El Mozote I cannot look upon them, huddledso closely together their cheekboneshug one another, the innocent blankfaces--innocent, because their eyesare all open wide as starless skies,blank because they lack flesh,faces because they smile at meendles… Read on blog or Reader The Rising Phoenix Review Read on blog or Reader El Mozote By M. Benjamin Thorne The Rising Phoenix Review June 7 El Mozote I cannot look upon them, huddled so closely together their cheekbones hug one another, the innocent blank faces--innocent, because their eyes are all open wide as starless skies, blank because they lack flesh, faces because they smile at me endlessly. They are manifold, so small. I found a tiny plastic horse near one, buried like the others almost casually, like a glass bottle drained of its juice after hard work and then thrown down to shatter, the shards covered over in cold earth. The dirt bit under my fingernails and became a part of me. By M. Benjamin Thorne Biography: M. Benjamin Thorne is an Associate Professor of Modern European History at Wingate University. Possessed of a lifelong love of history and poetry, he is interested in exploring the synergy between the two. His poems appear or are forthcoming in Topical Poetry, The New Verse News, The Savannah Literary Journal, and The Main Street Rag. He lives and sometimes sleeps in Charlotte, NC. Comment

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