As in: pre-.
The windy street-corner sermon,
the row of poplars waving
all their gold cards at once.
As in: otherwise-.
The gray-suited men
vanish like deer into November
the moment they stand still.
As in: certain territories
where the new occupants
must build a wall
to keep out the old.
And the space beside the wall
becomes a place to try one’s luck,
a place to wail.