the trail of tears
the ladel of fears
broken unbeing
graston and sear

brush my hair back from my face
your fingertips would trace

in those soft mornings

pregnant with light

i call your name still
in a cavernous mind

marching home from work
flapping my wings

the wind picking up
bits of papers and things

forgotten by hands
gripping the wheel

the streets don't remember
the sidewalks don't feel

like a runway

the cracks hold the tolling of bells on sunday

the grip of june
tight like a noose
full of a lifes deeds
and a wifes needs

green fruits trapping anxious seeds

colic and allergic epidemics of the flesh
give you collars and guns to truck over the bench

drenched in gravity
clenching my teeth
coughing and spout
the recipe for relief
drunken calamity wafting beneath
the warriors mistletoe and laurel wreath

❂