Backhoes and bowties,
cummerbunds, jackhammers,
top hats and canes, those racks
of awkward coats, off shades of black,
jigsaws, cufflinks, elastic waist
white wedding gowns.
An angry farmer auctions
off his daughter. There will be
a celebration, a barn raising,
the remodeling of a back room.
There is still some confetti
and sawdust in those shiny black shoes.
The engines run on cheap champagne,
the bride's water breaks,
the plumber runs to his truck
for a new gasket and valve seal.
A forklift still holds the cake
above the reach of children
as she is taken to the clinic
in the bucket of a Bobcat,
charuari rattling like rings in a sink,
she looks up to see power lines pass
like grooves in an old record.
Dustin Nightgale's work has appeared in numerous publications. This is his first appearance in Gnome.