Cleoparton
Not all eyes are on Dolly
when ten muscle-bound men in gold
loincloths carry her litter with asp arm
rests through Dollywood. White linen
with a jeweled shawl and ochre stenciled in
diamond bites on her cheek draw card
riffle shutter clicks. A fan of blue
ostrich feathers commands her gleaming men
move faster. Halfway out the exit gate
a boy squeezes in, hand up, and Dolly leans
down, beads in her straight Egyptian
hair swinging, for a quick, careful palm press.
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*"Cleoparton" was first published in The Broad River Review and in Powers's full-length poetry collection, The Follower's Tale.