the visit
Ceramic
tile
meets thin, faded wood plank.
Leather shoes
and
vein-laced hands
on the cool, coiled steel
opening charred black iron
stove
and
burning logs
heat on the brick
making for charred ladybugs
lying on the counter,
still wearing the clothes in which they died
their spots,
symmetrical wounds
of fires survived, gone by
in the
bathroom
i put on ‘a case of
you’ but no one is here
so i danced alone
and went to the bathroom to brush
my teeth and look
in the mirror but the sink
took my eye instead with its
rust and double taps and
i wondered how old i would be when
i did this again in my bathroom far
away, pulling out gray
hairs, and then
my mind pulled back to Joni
and the soft light thrown
on the walls and the
simple happiness felt at being alone
in this place,
and how this would soon
be a memory
northern
gannet
no dive is
guaranteed
and yet the gannet
dives again, and
again
first
aligning the spear-shaped beak
folding the wings, and
plunge
!
storm-petrel
its little
body vibrates
in the palm of my hand,
gathering energy from cosmic dust and
fish oil; then
crescendoes:
the ashen
prophet ascends on virgin wings
flashing its jagged course
drops of ink in an inkpot
millions of tiny messengers
dart through the darkness, seeking
only infinity
hushed
an etching
of eyelids
frozen in the golden sun
where silent creatures crept
and longtime friends said goodbye
waterfalls
stuck in time
and billboards sign one’s way to death
a lonely usher shakes hands at the funeral
as wintering birds chirp aside in secret
Taylor Brown is currently completing her PhD in biology at Trent University. She is an ecologist interested in the intersection of science and poetry, engaging with the natural world to evoke a sense of wonder and connection. In her free time, she likes to garden, make linoleum block prints, and write poetry – when she’s not out birding somewhere.