Dave Nielsen is the author of Unfinished Figures (Lynx House Press). He studied English at University of Cincinnati. His poems have appeared in The Southern Review, Ploughshares, North American Review, and other magazines. He lives in Salt Lake City. ---------
Dark Evening
Late in the evening
in a brightly lit room,
and the windows
have all gone black,
it is impossible to see
what is out there,
only your reflection—
and the reflection
of a single bulb
shining brightly above you,
like a big idea.
And there in the mirror
behind you, ten hundred
thousand more of you—
your ten hundred thousand hands,
all of them
grasping for it.