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gone into abstraction
gitane smoke before the rain,
cello case velvet interior
soft and firm
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breasts and silk once seen on canvas
could not concede to his kisses
or arch of bow
he had to wander
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no more companion
than those strings he manipulated
with fingers callused,
she will not tremor
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as absent as the background
waiting for a taxi,
rain effective conduit
to her misery,
he sheltered the cello
with umbrella
heading to a jazz club
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is the beat
is the tender thrum,
a cello’s true heart
and poets calling,
absinthe and kisses
parted stocking thighs
he had found another
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