A Purple House

Try to guess the color of the
Next house you see and even if you are
Four you won’t probably say “lilac” — which isn’t quite
The right word for the shade of the
Purple house in New Jersey that is a
Waterfall of love. All over the
Hardwoods flows the feet the feet
Coming and going with just some
Impulse, desire, to ask, to draw
To make, to tell, to go, to climb, to
Dress up and all over and up and down in
Endless circles the old house moves
With him and her and her and him
And one chasing the other, all before the
Addled countenance of one misunderstood
Dog.

And nothing is right cornered and
The smooth granite counters make less
Sense than the mismatched stools. And
All of it waits for the tone-hollow and perfect
Tune with made-up lyrics that
Floats like seaweed from the top of the stairs, held
Inside the walls of the house
A shade of a purple which
Isn’t lilac.