Eric Pankey is a professor of English and Writing at George Mason University. His poetry, essays, and reviews have appeared widely in notable journals and magazines and he is an author of numerous collections of poetry. His most recent book is Not Yet Transfigured (Orison Books, 2021). You may follow his work at his website.
House with Many Rooms
One recalls the depths of shadow,
The uncertain elsewhere of each room,
Dust like stellar remnants drawn together.
As one crosses a threshold, the room
Departed vanishes as if a stage set
On which the lights have been cut.
One has no choice but to move ahead,
And cannot help but feel an interloper,
Guilty of some voyeuristic intrusion,
Although the rooms are empty, unoccupied,
Perhaps ahead a furnished room waits:
A thin veneer of moonlight on a quilt.
Black crepe draped over the mirror.
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