Wildflowers
Beloved, I keep returning to you,
your splendor, blue,
crimson, yellow. Wondering
how long before your light fades
and you leave us, a mother
who leaves her mind
in the sun.
Blood Pressure
O the vessels
breaking in my love’s eyes,
the cuff that caresses him
like I do, in the dark.
Please, body-wonder,
drop, make the roaring
stop.
You’re rushing,
and I need
so much
more time
with him.
Papers
Canvas, dearest one.
I pull you up, gaze at words
like “argue” and “survey,”
study the rubric, Meets
Expectations, and I long
to love you, to care about
each curve of the words.
I long to believe someone
will read my comments
about what needs
to be changed.
I want to change
everything.
AR-15s
O your long straight
necks, your bullets,
the way children
are taught to embrace
you. Smile
for the camera!
Don’t think
about the
bodies
you
were
made
to destroy.
You are powerful. See, you
turn mothers into hurricanes.
Death
Yes, I get the subtext.
I try not to be afraid
of you, O brittle one.
Of the ways
you reach for us,
are always reaching
for us.
This isn’t closure.
It’s an open field,
and I am still picking flowers.
