reservoir fading skies
the greenest pine
needles tarantulas or
wedding vows jodhpurs
light silk sweat turtles amid
mountains two ducked hearts
murder in love a frozen deer
splinters of metal your abandoned
democracy you begin to run your
arms through the mists smugness
aloft the fruit of late season you
awake to feet of crystal stone
naked on a grass paradise plot
of your father’s estate how creeks
know of the sky’s smallest leaves
and their immense heart scents
of smoke the golden brown
of the soil actually stars
and no matter how we love
it does not end like a song
our tears pour but the storm
yes the storm dissolves
over us like fireworks

(originally published in Sybil Journal, 2025)