2 Poems by Ryan Keating

—By Jim—

At the height of Jim’s skyward passions
His affections no doubt surpassed
The meagre twelve foot clearance
of that Connecticut underpass

All the steel of the overhead bridge
Was no match for the breadth of his love
And even spraypainted block letters
Could not exhaust their meaning above

So he emblazoned his heart on that spot
In matte clamshell white, pure as a hymn
And after the words ‘Jim and Lisa’
He solemly added, ‘by Jim.’

—To Gravy—

The brown boat carries the sea
In swirling savory suspension
Of belief in the benefit of fat
Thick with hot pulsing juice that
Rolls in rhythmic rivulets over
Pillowed purée – a smashing mountain
Through whose starched hollows
Flow ferried passages of flavor
To the wet dark underworld
Where the decadent king of colloids
Tips his crown of meat and moisture
To reign and pour in torrents
Of viscous power over the plain
Plateaus of pretty porcelain
Echoing gasps of gastronomic
Ecstasy released by yet another
Round of satiated subjects.

Photo by victoria. on Unsplash

ABOUT RYAN KEATING

Ryan Keating is a pastor, writer, winemaker, and coffee roaster on the Mediterranean island of Cyprus. You can find his work at Ekstasis Magazine, The Agape Review, Words and Whispers, Box, and Vocivia (forthcoming). Twitter: @keatingr / Instagram: @ryankeating77