Phoebe Ann (A Quiet Simple Person)

With his son...Daphnis
casting through the trees
into dark and murky water

taking the line from him
to un-stick it from the bottom
Pahn pulls up a large object
that looks like a rock
but is too light to be stone

It must be Styrofoam
that has been stained
to the core
by the mud
of all these years
of lying on the bottom

A woman across the lake
single
and childless
not distracted by love
focused
professional
is quietly doing well            She walks by
                                           passing out of sight

Pahn takes the tackle
baiting the grapnel hook
with Feta cheese

Wading into the water         A teenage girl comes by
to cast further                        walking across the water
                                                       greeting in French
he swims back                                                 
to the deeper end                      A second comes by
                                                          speaking French
and casts his line                        with a few Spanish words
 
                                                  Pahn asks her if she is American
There are two large                 and she says “yes”
beautiful                                          (Her mix of languages
dark fish                                          gave her away)
circling around Pahn                                                        

One of them strikes the bait                                           
and he yanks the line                                           
to settle the hook                                          

He doesn’t see at first      Pahn is looking for something
where he has hooked it                                                        
but when he takes it            Egairia as a little girl
to show his family                  is walking around him
his wife (Aiks) asks him       Eendekoi as a little boy
why he had to catch it             is walking around him too

And when he asks                   The children are running
if he should let it go                  back      and forth
she says                                                   
that having                       Pahn is rummaging around
caught it                                   in a shoe box
damaged it                         for a present
they should eat it              for Egairia
                                          and Eendekoi
And then he sees                                 
that the hook has torn off                                  
one of its gills                  among the toy cars
showing its many tiny bones  harmonicas
and the tiny heart inside            skeletons
                                                             plastic hearts
                                                               and livers and lungs
 
                                                   Finally he looks down
                                                   and sees at his side
                                                 a little girl
                           with a rifle
on her shoulder—

Annie Oakley
as a child
                  and he thinks

this is the perfect gift

                                                 for them

.

.

The House of Egairia

.

He thought it was a spring.... a fountain in a Roman pond
..........an origin of water.... a king's source of advice—
but it was an old dark house in Oregon...................


…Pahn is cruising
the roughening road
followed
.............by men from work
........on a treasure hunt
to a high basin
............of mixed geology

...........................................................................Losing them
Pahn waits

Hendrik arrives
........................and Pahn shows him
.......................................the direction to travel
Pahn waits

Returning .........Hendrik carries
.........................................a sheaf
................................................................................of lemongrass

Pahn is unsure ....thinking
.................................................................Hendrik may have taken
..............................................................the wrong item

Pahn goes in the direction
to travel for verification

He stops outside a house and
.............................................................holds out the lemongrass
and someone
suggests
........................................that he ask Egairia
..............................................................................(who is inside)
..........................................................................if it is the true and correct treasure

Pahn is surprised
and shy
but enters the house ........................................................................


to find her .....standing with
a young boy
.........................of Aiks’ family
....................................................sharing her looks

Pahn holds Egairia

She doesn’t raise
.......................her arms ....but leans in to
.......................................him who doubts her love
....................................................but holds to his affection

She leads him
....................................................to her car

As they drive.........................................................
through the high northern town
wondering
..................................................about the source of its prosperity
Pahn is thinking
of Eendekoi
..................................that he might be living
...............................................in the house they have just left

Egairia drives fast facing......................................
backward .........weaving...
................................into oncoming traffic and she asks
Pahn
..............................to be her eyes

He cannot tell........................................................
if she is sick
..............or tired
...........or sad

as he runs
through the possible explanations for her behavior
..........................................................cancer
................................................................overwork
.................................................................loneliness
........................................................................temperament
...............................................................insomnia
...........................................................................a wasting illness
.................................................................pregnancy


Reaching her house.................
Pahn finds
......................................an older man working in the driveway
Pahn thinks
.......................................it must be her father
....................................but it is not

A young man...........................
walks out of the house
Pahn thinks
........................................it is her husband
.......................................but it is not

An older woman is inside
.....................................She is not her mother

Pahn imagines
.......................................they are all her friends helping
.........................with the house

Inside..........................................
he sits at the dining table
old
............and square in the faded
.........................rust-colored room
............................................................... with blackout curtains

Pahn gets up again and parts ..................................
the shades.........................................
...................to see if there is a view.......and finds
...............................................................................that the sun
...................is in the wrong place
...............for the direction he thought he was looking

He makes a sign of..........................
perplexity.........
................................and when they ask
..............................what’s wrong
he says

“I am disoriented”

The older woman remarks

“That’s how it is when
you are married”

Laughter

he wonders
...........if they are
..................................still married living
......................................................................................so far
............................................................................away
from each
....................................................other

Eendekoi

Egairia’s friend or lover, decoy, hunting elf.


Phoebe Ann
The House of Egairia
.