2 poems by John Raffetto

CENOTE IN SIAN KA’AM

Craters of sunken limestone
surround Mayan children and tangled mangroves
where a jaguar lies
waiting for the final footstep
into the rainforests
of Guatemala.

A refugee washes dust from a night bus ride
in a cenote.
Where the sky is born
and the earth breathes.



EMPTY GREENHOUSE

Empty in an empty greenhouse,
flat concrete bench with
algae stained circles
pots removed,
peeling white paint on vertical metal pipes
grey heat from horizontal metal pipes
below the benches
where an occasional hollow tap from open valves
a dry steam settles on the glass
empty greenhouse.