Summary

Prologue – “it can begin with clouds” - This poem contemplates how “it” can “begin” with clouds coming apart, then surrounding the earth, and how “you” can “find yourself in their absence,” The poem then shifts focus to the sky, with its fire and thunder “behind the torn universe,” all of which again comes apart so that “you” can see how everything seen can become nothing … “and you pass” (13).

Part 1 – Poem 1, Ayotzinapa (first in Spanish, then in English). The poem is dedicated “for the students, for Mexico, for the world.” The first part of the poem is written in a stream-of consciousness paragraph. It describes a student protest in favor of increased funding for teachers; how the protest was attacked by police; and how the marchers continued, their spirit spreading out into the world. In a separate stanza, the poem repeats the number...