The loss of her, the girl
I was fills me with sorrow,
A face so clear, hair so
Neatly parted and so dark,
Looking at photographs now,
I detect a flush spreading
Healthy across cheekbones,
Ancestry, blood lines so close
To the surface of skin and
A heart pulsing up from
The past, brittle leaves,
Branch and the bone,
Not once fully appreciated
Toward tomorrow, seasons,
The mysteries yet to be
Fulfilled and so the present
Is easy upon lips and a
Smile can be as fresh as
Daylight and as arresting,
Birth and youth know
No better than to extend
Themselves but come lover,
Bury yourself in my face,
Crystal grown up into
Weed, discover the wild
Woman, blossom and root,
I finally possess and would
Offer once more, a bulb split
Yet springing full bloom
Against bright sky, midnight
Wilderness, moon-filled
Galaxies and horizons.