Bearden’s card players
In some ways
Differ from Cézanne’s
In Cézanne
All
Three men
Intensely stare
At their
Cards
Their cards
Are their
Only world
In Bearden
Two card
Players
Stare
At their
Cards
Intensely
The third
Vacantly stares
Out
Toward us
But not looking
At us
His cards
Flat on the table
Does he have a bad
Hand or
Is he thinking
About his father’s
Impending
Death?
In Cézanne
The spectators
Pay no attention
To the game
Stare off
Musing on
Their own lives
In Bearden
No spectators
A waitress (?)
Brings
A glass
Of red
Wine
Possible joy
But
In Bearden’s
More
Colorful
World
Nobody
Interacts
Either
All are
Lost
In their
Own thoughts
Notes: This poem was previously published in Catamaran Literary Reader (2013) and is reprinted here by permission of William J. Harris. It is part of the portfolio “I Hope You Like Being Here with Me: The Work of William J. Harris,” curated by Howard Rambsy II.
Source: Poetry (February 2023)
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