She scribbles cryptic messages
in fading window frost;
composes abstract poetry
on the Ouija board
every Saturday night –
Aunt Sadie, all glassy-eyed,
fingers hovering over the planchette,
puts on an ethereal show
while ardent admirers
sip peach tea in the parlor
and spin tales on the front porch.
A coastal Carolina tradition:
entertaining guests with departed souls
and disembodied artistes –
if only they knew the secrets
Sadie keeps in the root cellar,
where she accumulates talent
posthumously, a ghostly
gifted entourage of candidates
still eager to perform,
loitering amidst the bones
of past auditions.
Lee Clark Zumpe, an entertainment editor with Tampa Bay Newspapers, earned his bachelor’s in English at the University of South Florida. He began writing poetry and fiction in the early 1990s. His work has regularly appeared in a variety of literary journals and genre magazines over the last two decades. Publication credits include Tiferet, Zillah, The Ugly Tree, Modern Drunkard Magazine, Red Owl, Jones Av., Main Street Rag, Space & Time, Mythic Delirium and Weird Tales. Lee lives on the west coast of Florida with his wife and daughter. Visit www.leeclarkzumpe.com.