poem

Air

Be good and strong my dear-

This is only one such day.

The suchness of days lends life its strangeness.

Be strong and watchful and pay attention.

Listen to the wind the way you would

When a lover whispers in your ear

At the crowded cocktail party

You never meant to attend.

Cup your cheeks around his chin to hear,

Crane your neck into the shadows of his voice.

Words try to be souls carried along by air.

Listen to him breathe when he sleeps.

Notice his chest rising and falling.

It’s ok to breathe, it’s ok to go back to sleep.

Go running in the frigid early morning.

Every smoky wisp of exhalation is unique,

Like each falling flake.

Flake upon flake becomes snow.

Breath after breath is an entire life.

In the spring it all melts
And rushes toward the sea in torrents-

The utter strangeness of this suchness.

11/30/19