TABLEAU (poem inspired by San Miguel de Allende)

Mark Eager. 1993. Doorway in Mexican town.

The half-open door

at 35 Calle Terraplén

casts afternoon light

on a shadowy hall

with polished tile and

carved mahogany.

Two maids in black

with starched white aprons

are haloed in the light,

their arms full of ivory sheets

and towels. They turn

to look at me, an intruder

on their private scene,

and in that instant I can see

a tableau vivant or perhaps

a flawless painting

from the Renaissance.

The poses and colors are

just right, revealing the edges

of a story I’ll never know

as I slowly turn away

and walk on.

Days of Obligation: An Argument with my Mexican Father by Richard Rodriguez