It had already occurred
when I passed by.
Though the glass seemed freshly strewn,
confetti for a deadly wedding,
the obscenities of shock
were already evaporating from the air.
The benign winking of the police lights – almost gay –
and a candy-stripe tongue of hazard tape
let pedestrians and motorists alike
pass with distracted irritation:
the mangled carcass of the family sedan
no matter to them now.
eleanor j jackson 