Straw Man
by Matthew Nies (June 2021)
Présentation du Miracle, Paul Klee, 1916
Surveyed fingers erupt from twine-tied wrists;
Data-blank eyes punctuate a tasseled head
Capped generally with niceties like fists
Framed in questions true blue or red
Blood, which he doesn’t bleed because he’s all straw.
You might worry about his boots
Kicking concrete prints, but his feet are too light to draw
Conclusions any more than what you choose.
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Matthew Nies is a 2020 NDSU Press POPP Chapbook Award finalist and the author of the poetry book Sunset Dreams (Wipf & Stock, 2019). His poetry has also appeared in literary journals and anthologies including Plainsong, Ancient Paths, and On Second Thought.
Follow NER on Twitter @NERIconoclast