One in Hell

Zdzisław Beksiński – 1986

With only four days until its “official” release, I think it’s time I let you folks sample some of my chapbook, Come Fly with Death: Poems Inspired by the Artwork of Zdzislaw Beksinski. So as a sort of “countdown,” I will be posting one poem from the book right here every day through launch day, Sunday, October 12.

Today I am sharing the first poem included, which is also the first one I wrote for the collection. It was inspired by the image of the painting above (and I might be breaking some copyright laws by posting that, I really don’t know).

So have a read, and if you like the poem, consider pre-ordering the ebook on Amazon for only $0.99, or grab a physical copy, which has (unintentionally) arrived a few days early (whoops!) and is now available to order on Createspace or Amazon for the retail price of $5.99. The print edition should also be available to order through your local bookstore in (just?) a few weeks (why that process takes so long, I have no clue).

And be sure to stop back here to check out a new poem from this little chapbook every day through Sunday.

Enjoy!

ONE IN HELL

Bones wrapped in bones,

wrapped in layers,

layers of bone on bone;

encrusted earth of flesh

crumbles at our feet,

our feet formed of clay.

Your face, my face—

we melt into one.

Our place,

Our flesh,

Our bones,

heaped upon this pole,

this whipping pole,

this torture pole

jutting from the nightmare.

You give me hugs.

I taste your lips;

they are one inside my mouth

and fused in teeth,

blended as I bite,

and eat you whole

and eat your parts.

My heart still beats

somewhere inside your chest,

deep within your cage,

ribs stripped of flesh;

and your heart mingles, tickles,

tingles in my skull.

My eyes peel wide

to wicked weather,

creeping fog,

settling dew

saturated with our fluids;

rain of skin

falls softly now upon us.

Me, you, we—

there is no start,

there is no end;

our twisted corpses

stretching on

forever,

and forever—

we are intertwined.