Once a year
my sister visits the grave
of Montgomery Clift
She travels one hundred miles
to kneel in a Brooklyn cemetery
and weep before his
modest headstone
I marvel at her romanticism
aimed at this mangled wreck
of an actor
this helpless mess of a man
pumped up with drugs
and rough ***
a haunted matinee idol
cavorting on the cusp
of madness
On her way home
she stares out
a bus window
She remembers his tremulous voice
and brooding eyes
his sullen features
overwhelming the giant screen
Soon she will fall asleep
dreaming of him holding her
in his anxious fragile arms
while the gray streets of Brooklyn
rush by
Jun 27, 2015
Jun 27, 2015 at 2:55 PM UTC
Once a year
my sister visits the grave
of Montgomery Clift
She travels one hundred miles
to kneel in a Brooklyn cemetery
and weep before his
modest headstone
I marvel at her romanticism
aimed at this mangled wreck
of an actor
this helpless mess of a man
pumped up with drugs
and rough ***
a haunted matinee idol
cavorting on the cusp
of madness
On her way home
she stares out
a bus window
She remembers his tremulous voice
and brooding eyes
his sullen features
overwhelming the giant screen
Soon she will fall asleep
dreaming of him holding her
in his anxious fragile arms
while the gray streets of Brooklyn
rush by