fifteen further

sea outside window. see her birthplace, blanket of sky turned under.

sea toes, wrinkled and damp. plash of light break upon sip.

bells of boats, goats.

her bellow fills chamber with toddling grief.

throne below salt toe. patter upon marble stair.

kerosene, a sudden crisis. scene for a mother’s sight. 

cry. sigh. absence of care. 

sea song at night. see treetops to coast.

toe upon sift. tenacious as tide. 

she learns how to drift.

fourteen forward

 the return is reassuring            blue moon on harvest

she curries okra and corn, decants solstice plant

vision of girl with guitar reminds her of

dream's effort to persist

one star comes into view

she is torn between urge to emulsify and urge to distil

single pointedly she targets the trek

thirteen moons

they were both on a ship

he wrestled with dark force :: she climbed stairwells 

he was certain he would triumph

she was lost and searching for seats

people lined up at exits

each room was unique

courtesy phone was impossible

twelve selvage

he is presented with an awkward possibility

there is no answer in ice cubes

the couldn't bees are louder than the cans 

it is not his style of music

her eyes tease and shift

she asks him to pop the tab

they tap feet to a tedious jazz

vocabulary he chooses breaks against wall

rancid stench emerges

she lightly touches his arm and leaves a trail of honey

eleven levitate

cloak of day snapped          tassels and velvet orchestra

to mine the clouds     deep gray hillock     eye of tree

a parting has occurred          water pools between ridges

nuthatch descends head first while cattails switch

ecco of songbird fills tunnel and emerges as a worthy character

tall stalks entwined with whisper and jostle 

are topped with beacons

in linen gown she climbs mound

 under gaze of wise tree she wades through grasses

 small birds keen from scrub as she kneels by craggy pond 

she bathes in spring and swallows her scars