Play
When you were a child, How did you play? Before reading any further, Pause. Recall. Remember the smell of play. Its delicious tastes. Remember your heart In your ears, the steady Pulse of white noise. How exciting! The feeling Of surrendering all senses— Two disembodied eyes. For that is what you were, Floating, timeless, Now. Observing who You were. You [...]
Eating Spicebush Berries
It's strange to know the title Before the title appears. Receiving— Researchers at the University of Virginia report that most reincarnations Occur within five hundred kilometers Of the avatar's death. Prior memories Typically dissolve by age six: Cobwebs. Distractions. Sunlight. Potomac, I have known your silty Banks for how long? From before— Gabardine green. I carried a girl frog- Like [...]
All Of Autumn
These scattered prairie clouds— Such blush! Oh, the pink Brightening of autumn, drought- Dusted leaves muddy with September Rain. Do you remember the rain? It pours sometimes, doesn't it— Always in the past. Always in Some brighter moment which is Not now—I've heard you grumble! Look. The greening pastures Engorged with sweetness. Look. The final blue moon—that is, until The [...]
Trail Of Feathers
I've been walking a trail of feathers For days along the black, nettled canal Rich with blue fishes, flashing damsel Flies, umbelliferous elder surrendering Rhubarb stalks to the flat feet of swans. How long have I been walking? Not far, Just as long as I can recall. Everyone knows Our memory is the most unreliable Witness of all—Blue fishes in [...]
I Hung The Moon On A Nail
I hung the moon on a nail In my kitchen, a blank space Of sky or wall or whatever You believe the horizon to be— Most people believe it's something. I believed there was a nail there And the painting concurred, strung Soon and perfectly too high, Much like the moon often is. My algorithm insists I love Clair De [...]
How To Heal
It's been nine months since I cut my finger nearly to the bone, September 2022, the knife laying Indifferently on the counter as the blood Gushed across the kitchen tiles, across Everywhere, six stitches three hours Later in the Jefferson County West Virginia emergency room. I was alone And I have remained mostly alone since, Grown alone, in October severing [...]