Snapshot of a Man in Front of a Mural

By Ryan Keating

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Standing in front of the painted angel-
wing mural black and white on the wall,
he isn’t lined up perfectly so they don’t fit
well, feet at an angle slanted left skewing
perspective, gaze distracted, slumped shirt
crumpled at the belt, face down, frowning.

But the wings are still spread wide, open
from shoulder and collarbone to the edge
of the frame, filling a space thought empty
and capable of carrying him in flight.
We can all see what he doesn’t notice
because he is facing the right direction.

---

Ryan Keating is a writer, pastor, and winemaker on the Mediterranean island of Cyprus. His work can be found in publications such as Saint Katherine Review, Ekstasis Magazine, Amethyst Review, Macrina Magazine, Fathom, Dreich, Vocivia and Miras Dergi, where he is a regular contributor in English and Turkish.

Ryan's other work on Foreshadow:
Jonah Moves (Poetry, September 2022)
Drawing from Deep Wells: Ryan Keating and Pilgrimage (Interview, February 2023)
The Wine Remembers (Poetry, June 2023)
Presence (Poetry, June 2023)