Poetry
creation
light from the stars
leaves of mugwort muddled into ash
breath of valley race down the hills
the sun tips as they reflect off the horizon
of mountain bit
by the great snake of it’s peaks
crack of dust from acorn shell
before its ground to flour
underneath the stone of mortar and pestle
grinding rock
memory
i hold your hands in mine wrinkled skin slide across your bones
embellished with precious stones
show me your ring
that you’ve had for years
i heard last night
you turned the gas stove on
and walked outside
so we’ve taken off the knobs and changed the locks on the doors
but it hasn't stopped the tears you cry for home
and night after night
you ask for your mom
so i call you
just so you can hear my voice
and believe that i am her
burden
Keep me in the water
like deergrass for coils
waiting to be dyed
deep wine of juncus
Se’ il
splinted sumac
bite the ends with your teeth
wrap me piece by piece
until your hands turn blue
keep the skin from falling apart
boil my bones black
like the juniper in the fire
Se’ il tu iksh
sit your body down to dirt
Indian style
on the burnt umber
twist me into the vision
you hang on the walls
leave on your kitchen table
fill with moss potpourri
extract
until i no longer remember my roots
auxin
plants lean
to the light
compose
an orchestra of
molecules
ingrained with
adoration
each passing
moment
we would too
if we cared
for the children
of the sun
like we do
its mother
aunties
i used to feel hands
squeezing my ribs
like a lemon burdened with juice
to live up to your name
the day of your birth
the kindness in your heart
because your eyes hold more softness
than what i grip in all of my bones
already grown dry and callused
entwined in layers of sinew
where i am stiff
you are tender
like fresh tanned hide
caressed by plumes of pine
but i have always been
more like your sisters
tongue sharp to cut
like the whispers in the kitchen
bucknife against flesh
delicacies
i hardly know my own language
it sits on the tip of my tongue
and when i learn our stories
it tastes like nostalgia
elderberries
acorn mush
salmon cheek
