Lawrence Di Stefano

Percolator

There is no other way to begin but by returning
to the rounded edge that bends square 

into circle—a recurring kitchen scene of morning
and the satisfaction of seeing separate ends 

made compatible—an inhuman, perfect form of blue
flame to copper plate, the direct contact in facing 

the day with its submission. A mounting pressure
building and in its chrome the same portrait 

wavering with steam—a nervous energy, the constant
need to be transformed. This is one way of passing 

through a system of obscured miracles, with only
the muffled sound of some quiet struggle 

as evidence to what appears on the surface,
as a kind of grace.

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Lawrence Di Stefano’s poems have appeared or are forthcoming in RHINO, Free State Review, STIRRING, The Shore and Santa Clara Review, among other journals. He holds an MFA in poetry from San Diego State University, is a Book Review Editor at The Los Angeles Review and a Best New Poets nominee for 2022.