Silence by Jeff Munnis
brown polished shoes announced him
In the summer rolled up sleeves just below the elbow
Large hands
dressed for work
even when he took out the sailboat
Fishing poles nets coolers ice
The motor and sails carried him north
then he drifted down river
He liked to stand in the boat facing west
to look at the groves
the palms the mudflats
the land he owned
He moved from task to task
conversation to silence
his eyes straight ahead
I saw him try to catch dragonflies with his bare hands
Singleminded
His facts were something he told himself about himself
and whatever he told himself about others
I followed the same water trail in my flatboat
I watched the gentle wake spread
out from the rail
brown green organic water
I imagined the green ledger with red lines
with separate accounts
the curious transactions
to be placed on his grand ledger
I imagined Donna
she moved
from file drawer to file
to desk to vault
back to the center of Alan
where he created the mysterious calculation
that left him aware of everything
In the boat my eyes dropped down to the water
I wanted to cover myself
The red line of the ledger
like a thread of blood
The curious part of me
forced to retreat
(a dry soft wind)
I sat on the bench outside his office and waited
to be invited into the mysteries of the closed vault
Donna was there
She complained to him that everyone knows I work for you
He said sometimes the obvious conceals the things I most want to hide
I was the object he did not choose
perhaps a concession to his desire
the unintended consequence
The security guard turned the key in the lock to the glass front door
Outside the transparent barrier two men stood
and cupped their hands around their eyes
to search the inside the bank
their muffled voices puffed a humid mist onto the glass
I watched the quiet movements
a silent drama
I nestled in the furniture
an insect with a mottled coat
blended into the wood and fabric
I slid down to the spotted marble floor
unnoticed by the dust
a dry soft wind
(curious progression)
Michael and Eddie looked over the hood of their car
in the direction of Donna’s feminine presence
She walked between them
the hem of her dress pulled tight around her knees
her movement swiveled compact
I know she knew I watched her
She gave information to Alan
so I kept a distance
From my flatboat in the marina
I looked at the blue and white Buick
Michael and Eddie carried a case of beer
Eddie raised a bottle in the air to wave
when I waved back they walked out
Donna trailed behind
She rolled her tongue over the top of the bottle
took a swallow
threw it down hard
inside an empty metal drum
Eddie wanted to know what my deal was with Alan
I didn’t answer
Then he asked about Henry
Why would a black negro like him make liquor
in the middle of the Simmons groves
Then he said something about a pretty little black girl that lived with her momma
I ignored him
He turned just in time to see Donna’s expression change
She waited to pounce
but he turned and walked away
Michael smiled
content to let them fight
He wanted to know how the Simmons system works
I ignored the false familiarity
then the question that sits under the surface
How did you get what you have
(damn polite)
Eddie pushed me into the back seat
and I stared straight ahead
Eddie asked Where are we going
Someone said For a little ride
Donna sat next to him with her legs crossed
smoked a cigarette
She wore a dark blue skirt
The sleeveless white top had a v-neck
Her sandals were black without a back strap
I listened from the back seat
You look tense Want a cigarette
No
We rode north on US 1
My feet were hot from the floorboard
The tires made a dull thumping sound on the road
I looked at Eddie his hand extended out flat on his knee
North of Titusville we turned east
down a wide dirt road
Orange trees slid by in the dark humid heaviness
Fragrance seeped into the car
Donna put out her cigarette and asked Eddie
Can we open the windows
Yeah
The air filled the car with the smell of rotten oranges
Everyone was so damn polite
I could hardly take the silence
Eddie slowed the car and leaned forward
looked into the dark
Ragweed and fennel as tall as the car
grew out to the edge of the road
(being social)
Eddie flashed on the high beam
Henry stepped out from the weeds
we could see his dirty khaki pants and white t-shirt
black shoes with the backs pushed down to slide them on
He pointed to his left
and we turned down a narrow road with deep sandy ruts
Halfway into the turn Eddie stopped the car
and Henry slid in next to me
He smelled strong and salty
Earthy I thought and laughed to myself
Henry he said and nodded to me
Brian I said and he turned to look at me
Donna was silent and searching her purse
Grass and weeds brushed against the floorboards of the car
A white glow from two windows in a wood frame house
filtered through the orange trees
The front porch had two large columns
the front door was open
Eddie drove into an open area of grass and dirt
Henry leaned against the door to keep from touching me
He shifted and spoke
Stop anywhere I’ll go inside
He left the car door open
walked up the stairs to the porch
and turned his shoulders as he went through the front door
We were silent and watched
Heat rose from the ground
the smell of the exhaust came into the car
Donna looked at me while she smoked her cigarette
You know these people
I’ve known Henry since I was a small boy
Donna looked at her fingernails
He don’t seem to know you
It’s been awhile I wasn’t being social
You think he recognizes you now
No
You told him your name
Eddie told Donna to leave me alone
Yeah I guess so
I looked at Eddie who thought it was funny
(something sour)
Eddie asked me to go
up to the house
Inside the front door
A bulb dangled at the end of a wire and lighted the room to the right
Six red candles sat on the window sill
The orange flames moved when we entered the room
Sarah sat on a chair surrounded by glass bottles
and two burlap bags filled with round cork
Julia sat near the window
Three galvanized tubs were full of brown liquid
Julia scooped up the liquid with an aluminum coffee pot
and poured it into a funnel at the top of a bottle
When it was half full she moved
to a new bottle and scooped and poured
Sarah followed her with another funnel and
filled the bottles to the shoulder with alcohol
Our presence did not interrupt the production
We waited
Henry came from behind us in the hall
They want ten bottles
Sarah looked at Julia and then at Henry she said soft and quiet
You don’t know these men
Julia pointed at me
That’s Brian Alan’s son
I looked at Eddie and he just stood there looking at Julia
Sarah spoke
And that’s ok You think just cause you know them they can’t hurt you
Henry stiffened and answered
No
Henry’s eyes looked around the room
first at Sarah then his eyes settled on Julia
He wanted the money
Henry stood silent
heavy and hard
without feeling
He turned to Sarah
We’ll deal with any problems later
I looked at the black soot on the bottom of the tubs
The scent of the candles mixed with something sour
(bottom of the trunk)
Sarah set out ten bottles
corked and waxed
Donna called from the front porch
Hello Where the hell are you
Henry stepped back into the hallway
Wait there
Donna coughed
Don’t worry I’m not coming in
Eddie turned to me
Jesus, this place smells
Hey I have something
Bring some bottles and leave out the cork
Henry looked at me and stood up when he saw
the clear plastic bag of white powder
Eddie dropped to his knees and tore away
a corner of the bag
white powder trickled into each bottle
a light dust settled on the floor
Henry helped him cork the bottles
put them in a wooden box made for oranges
and placed it in the trunk
I got in the back seat
Henry leaned in
looked at Donna
then our eyes met
He pushed the door shut as he stepped away
(stretching skin)
I got out and jerked my arm away from Donna
she struggled to hang on
Eddie and Michael threw open the front doors and jumped out of the car
I saw the lights of the car lot through the weeds
Henry was stooped over and hid next to the canal beyond the cattails
His large eyes white with black dots
Why are you there I thought
Donna grabbed my belt
I dragged her behind the car
Her legs were covered with sand and dust
she lost her shoes
She grunted and cried in short gasps
Eddie and
In the summer rolled up sleeves just below the elbow
Large hands
dressed for work
even when he took out the sailboat
Fishing poles nets coolers ice
The motor and sails carried him north
then he drifted down river
He liked to stand in the boat facing west
to look at the groves
the palms the mudflats
the land he owned
He moved from task to task
conversation to silence
his eyes straight ahead
I saw him try to catch dragonflies with his bare hands
Singleminded
His facts were something he told himself about himself
and whatever he told himself about others
I followed the same water trail in my flatboat
I watched the gentle wake spread
out from the rail
brown green organic water
I imagined the green ledger with red lines
with separate accounts
the curious transactions
to be placed on his grand ledger
I imagined Donna
she moved
from file drawer to file
to desk to vault
back to the center of Alan
where he created the mysterious calculation
that left him aware of everything
In the boat my eyes dropped down to the water
I wanted to cover myself
The red line of the ledger
like a thread of blood
The curious part of me
forced to retreat
(a dry soft wind)
I sat on the bench outside his office and waited
to be invited into the mysteries of the closed vault
Donna was there
She complained to him that everyone knows I work for you
He said sometimes the obvious conceals the things I most want to hide
I was the object he did not choose
perhaps a concession to his desire
the unintended consequence
The security guard turned the key in the lock to the glass front door
Outside the transparent barrier two men stood
and cupped their hands around their eyes
to search the inside the bank
their muffled voices puffed a humid mist onto the glass
I watched the quiet movements
a silent drama
I nestled in the furniture
an insect with a mottled coat
blended into the wood and fabric
I slid down to the spotted marble floor
unnoticed by the dust
a dry soft wind
(curious progression)
Michael and Eddie looked over the hood of their car
in the direction of Donna’s feminine presence
She walked between them
the hem of her dress pulled tight around her knees
her movement swiveled compact
I know she knew I watched her
She gave information to Alan
so I kept a distance
From my flatboat in the marina
I looked at the blue and white Buick
Michael and Eddie carried a case of beer
Eddie raised a bottle in the air to wave
when I waved back they walked out
Donna trailed behind
She rolled her tongue over the top of the bottle
took a swallow
threw it down hard
inside an empty metal drum
Eddie wanted to know what my deal was with Alan
I didn’t answer
Then he asked about Henry
Why would a black negro like him make liquor
in the middle of the Simmons groves
Then he said something about a pretty little black girl that lived with her momma
I ignored him
He turned just in time to see Donna’s expression change
She waited to pounce
but he turned and walked away
Michael smiled
content to let them fight
He wanted to know how the Simmons system works
I ignored the false familiarity
then the question that sits under the surface
How did you get what you have
(damn polite)
Eddie pushed me into the back seat
and I stared straight ahead
Eddie asked Where are we going
Someone said For a little ride
Donna sat next to him with her legs crossed
smoked a cigarette
She wore a dark blue skirt
The sleeveless white top had a v-neck
Her sandals were black without a back strap
I listened from the back seat
You look tense Want a cigarette
No
We rode north on US 1
My feet were hot from the floorboard
The tires made a dull thumping sound on the road
I looked at Eddie his hand extended out flat on his knee
North of Titusville we turned east
down a wide dirt road
Orange trees slid by in the dark humid heaviness
Fragrance seeped into the car
Donna put out her cigarette and asked Eddie
Can we open the windows
Yeah
The air filled the car with the smell of rotten oranges
Everyone was so damn polite
I could hardly take the silence
Eddie slowed the car and leaned forward
looked into the dark
Ragweed and fennel as tall as the car
grew out to the edge of the road
(being social)
Eddie flashed on the high beam
Henry stepped out from the weeds
we could see his dirty khaki pants and white t-shirt
black shoes with the backs pushed down to slide them on
He pointed to his left
and we turned down a narrow road with deep sandy ruts
Halfway into the turn Eddie stopped the car
and Henry slid in next to me
He smelled strong and salty
Earthy I thought and laughed to myself
Henry he said and nodded to me
Brian I said and he turned to look at me
Donna was silent and searching her purse
Grass and weeds brushed against the floorboards of the car
A white glow from two windows in a wood frame house
filtered through the orange trees
The front porch had two large columns
the front door was open
Eddie drove into an open area of grass and dirt
Henry leaned against the door to keep from touching me
He shifted and spoke
Stop anywhere I’ll go inside
He left the car door open
walked up the stairs to the porch
and turned his shoulders as he went through the front door
We were silent and watched
Heat rose from the ground
the smell of the exhaust came into the car
Donna looked at me while she smoked her cigarette
You know these people
I’ve known Henry since I was a small boy
Donna looked at her fingernails
He don’t seem to know you
It’s been awhile I wasn’t being social
You think he recognizes you now
No
You told him your name
Eddie told Donna to leave me alone
Yeah I guess so
I looked at Eddie who thought it was funny
(something sour)
Eddie asked me to go
Inside the front door
A bulb dangled at the end of a wire and lighted the room to the right
Six red candles sat on the window sill
The orange flames moved when we entered the room
Sarah sat on a chair surrounded by glass bottles
and two burlap bags filled with round cork
Julia sat near the window
Three galvanized tubs were full of brown liquid
Julia scooped up the liquid with an aluminum coffee pot
and poured it into a funnel at the top of a bottle
When it was half full she moved
to a new bottle and scooped and poured
Sarah followed her with another funnel and
filled the bottles to the shoulder with alcohol
Our presence did not interrupt the production
We waited
Henry came from behind us in the hall
They want ten bottles
Sarah looked at Julia and then at Henry she said soft and quiet
You don’t know these men
Julia pointed at me
That’s Brian Alan’s son
I looked at Eddie and he just stood there looking at Julia
Sarah spoke
And that’s ok You think just cause you know them they can’t hurt you
Henry stiffened and answered
No
Henry’s eyes looked around the room
first at Sarah then his eyes settled on Julia
He wanted the money
Henry stood silent
heavy and hard
without feeling
He turned to Sarah
We’ll deal with any problems later
I looked at the black soot on the bottom of the tubs
The scent of the candles mixed with something sour
(bottom of the trunk)
Sarah set out ten bottles
corked and waxed
Donna called from the front porch
Hello Where the hell are you
Henry stepped back into the hallway
Wait there
Donna coughed
Don’t worry I’m not coming in
Eddie turned to me
Jesus, this place smells
Hey I have something
Bring some bottles and leave out the cork
Henry looked at me and stood up when he saw
the clear plastic bag of white powder
Eddie dropped to his knees and tore away
a corner of the bag
white powder trickled into each bottle
a light dust settled on the floor
Henry helped him cork the bottles
put them in a wooden box made for oranges
and placed it in the trunk
I got in the back seat
Henry leaned in
looked at Donna
then our eyes met
He pushed the door shut as he stepped away
(stretching skin)
I got out and jerked my arm away from Donna
she struggled to hang on
Eddie and Michael threw open the front doors and jumped out of the car
I saw the lights of the car lot through the weeds
Henry was stooped over and hid next to the canal beyond the cattails
His large eyes white with black dots
Why are you there I thought
Donna grabbed my belt
I dragged her behind the car
Her legs were covered with sand and dust
she lost her shoes
She grunted and cried in short gasps
Eddie and