Originally from the East End of Long Island, Rosemary Szczygiel makes her home is Fernandina Beach, Florida. She is an artist and writer with degrees in Fine Arts from Southampton College and Library and Information Science from the University of South Florida. She has received awards from the Amelia Island Book Festival and the Kosciuszko Foundation in New York.
Her publications include “Speaking to the Extraordinary: an Interview with David Ignatow” and most recently “Extending Boundaries: an Interview with Theodore Worozbyt.” Both appear in Arts & Letters: Journal of Contemporary Culture.
Rosemary is the host of the monthly deadpaper readings.
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Wrapped in overcoat, silk scarf, felt hat,
I took old haunts as good as any reason,
to dust the banister as I descended;
at the foot of the stair; donned my boots and gloves.
Outside, I paused to breathe deeply, cold fresh air.
Streets were winter silent, save scraping shovels,
vigilant shopkeepers clearing paths for persons
venturing out: cupboard’s bare, unprepared
holiday hosts, romantics savoring snowflakes,
fools revisiting the past, pretending
these few folks were familiar friends,
neighbors lived with all one’s life.
To my surprise, while gazing through the tufted sky,
I heard the ferry not making noise, as I
imagined washing waves along her side,
curling in a wake as she crept along the bay,
then, boom! Into the slip, landing
against the sea wall (same as I recall)
How many times, how many days, how many
nights this year will passengers look back
as islands disappear, before stepping foot on
terra-firma, shall we say, the world-at-large? |
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