I first saw
what looked
to be
an Angel
weeping
outside of the
Department
of Motor Vehicles
where she
had failed
the driving
test

I didn’t
know
what to
say to
console
her and
her wings
beat
dangerously
close to
my body

I lit
a cigarette
and tried
to memorize
what to do
if a big
rig truck
slid on the
ice towards
my stopped
orange Volkswagen
Bug

You fly
up she
whispered
and I
grinned
at her

You got
another
one of
those
Sumerian
cigarettes
she asked

That afternoon
I helped
her resist
the temptation
to get out
of the car
and bring down
lightening
at every red
traffic light

And in
return she
told me
her name
was
Inanna
and that
we would
meet again
in one of
her poems

a few
thousand
years from
now

Beau Beausoleil is a poet and activist (Al-Mutanabbi Street Starts Here) based in San Francisco, California. His most recent book of poetry is, Another Way Home – Blue Light Press 2022.