2

raucous freshness

this is a story i have told myself already:

but a hand reached out

of that fiery, turgid depth.

it was a shaken and pale shoot

and it was mine.

i looked at it. it plunged into

the presence of you as if

into water.

as if

into

water,

distilled

and shattered

against

a pit

of glass:

smooth

and clear

as inverted

sunlight.

my love demands

what it can:

this

very heart

is yours.

save

me

from

my own

flesh.