Stretcher Bearers

snow only comes with death here
I thought I heard you say
but it fell twice at Christmas

as we watched the truancy of crystal
shredded coconut out of trees
refusing to stay grounded

albino kelp on the herbs
a tincture of ointment rising
out of that braiding landscape

and I was thinking of how
lepers were smoked with rosemary
so as not to announce in begging

their presence among the healthy



Walking Through Fences ASM & Cerberus Flying Island Books 2018