Kareem Tayyar: New York Elegy

I saw the ghost of Whitman bathing in Bethesda Square,

The mounted beat cops directing traffic on a moonless Manhattan night,

The St. Marks street queens stalking rainbows with a poet’s flair.

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There were treasures hidden everywhere,

The bikini beauties tending bar and trading verses with the travelers downing pints,

I saw the ghost of Whitman bathing in Bethesda Square.

.

From the top of Rockefeller Center you could have combed the starlight’s lovely hair,

Seen the children blessing tired parents with their laughter on a perfect April night,

The St. Marks street queens stalking rainbows with a poet’s flair.

.

It was almost more than I could bear,

To be without you as the birds in Central Park took flight,

I saw the ghost of Whitman bathing in Bethesda Square.

.

Each night I would climb the hotel’s winding stair

And dream of you with all my might,

The St. Marks street queens stalking rainbows with a poet’s flair.

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Your passing was proof that life was never fair,

That even those we love will vanish faster than the speed of light,

I saw the ghost of Whitman bathing in Bethesda Square,

The St. Marks street queens stalking rainbows with a poet’s flair.

Copyright 2015 Kareem Tayyar. First published in Magic Carpet Poems (Tebot Bach)