mileage

and the runner was the edge

and the edge was soft

and in that soft, that soft, that sweet

and tangy sweat, hard breathing

and ache; twinge

and creak of bone, of joint

and jarring impact

and moments of light, of light, so light

and easy

legend

and the sparks flew down from the mountain
and the shots rang out from the sea
and he slew the restless wanderer
and made himself home for me

more/less

and when the world

comes crashing in
like it always do
I’ll

every time the sun rises
paints the sky
I say
Hey, God
well done
love you
too

hold you tight
in my mind
if nothing
else
dreaming
of into for
the reality

orange-maroon globe
this morning
perfectly round
delicate
strong
and set
in hazy summer dawn
sky
misty gray-pink

eight bells

that

cussed white dress
lulls me into
security
by standing
so quietly in the
corner
of my mind
hands folded
behind her
back
until the odd
bewildering
moments when she
leaps
forward
voluminous
skirts flapping
and fluttering
to remind me she’s
there
and isn’t
going
anywhere

one very long measure

soft promenade

graceful

circle

(dancing)

eloquent arms

yearning
reaching
poetry of all, of none, of this
(strength)
fast, slow
in, out
up, down
around, around, around
and hold
stretch
(weakness)
graceful fingertips, wrists
arch of feet, of spine, of neck
whirl
tilt
revolve
leap
(bittersweet ache)
to make you feel
to make you feel
to make you feel
(my love)

wants and wants

I bash her on the head

and sink her

into my deepest, darkest dungeon

but she rises

oh
she rises
again, and again
her times of slumber
shorten,
her strength grows

again she rises,

awakening again
and again
I swallow her
with all my will
I push her down—
not yet, not
yet again

could I but promise her

soon
soon, my darling, soon

oh my darling

will soon ever come?

will she ever

fly free?

or must I

deny her an existence

again and again

and again

and oh—

again