Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, A GALLUP SWILL-HOLE; OR, CANTINA BLUES, by CLARENCE MAJOR



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Classic and Contemporary Poetry

A GALLUP SWILL-HOLE; OR, CANTINA BLUES, by                 Poet Analysis     Poet's Biography
First Line: Her words curled before him in spirals


Her words curled before him in spirals.
She told him, "They work
a section-gang down the street."
She, Sheba, the Navajo,
never spilled beer.
"My folks are of the [censored] clan."
Her words sped in jerky motion.
She told him, "We left
the reservation when I was ten.
I lost my [censored] when I was eleven."
She went to wait on another table.
A guy slapped her big fat [censored].
A bunch of dudes from Black Mesa Mine
still in hardhats came in.
He admired the way she handled them.
Her words curled around their heads,
turning them back into farmhands.
She, Sheba, the Navajo,
punched Hank Williams's "Lonesome Trail."
She took the empties away and
never once let on that she felt
like [censored] every minute here
with these ex-sheepherders
in McKinley uniforms.


Used with the permission of Copper Canyon Press, P.O. Box 271, Port Townsend, WA
98368-0271, www.cc.press.org




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