Paul Rabinowitz

Tongue Tied

It would be easy to explain
if I were shirtless
covered in paint
atop a twelve
foot ladder
layers of drop cloth
underneath

with Beethoven’s concerto
number five blaring
brush in hand
I lean into a canvas
with muscles flexed
applying final touches
around corners
of your mouth

But instead
I sit alone
with small fingers
on plastic keys
conjuring stories
about a conflicted artist
who paints scenes of longing
in early dawn
waiting for drips of light
to uncover his darkness

.

Paul Rabinowitz’s photography, prose and poetry appear in several magazines and journals including The Sun Magazine, New World Writing, Arcturus-Chicago Review Of Books, Evening Street Press, The Montreal Review, The Oddville Press and elsewhere. Rabinowitz was a featured artist in Nailed Magazine in 2020, Mud Season Review in 2022, Apricity Press in 2023 and Rappahannock Review in 2024. Rabinowitz’s poems and fiction are the inspiration for 8 award-winning experimental films, including Best Experimental Short at Cannes, Venice Shorts Film Festival, Oregon Short Film Festival, and The Paris Film Festival. Learn more about his books and art here: www.paulrabinowitz.com

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