Day as this. The wind is cutting
But sparse and thin, like the cold jabs
Of a small child, my sister. Mother
Laughs miles away and I sit outside
Smelling and smelling of an
Unattended bonfire. We talk.
Birds fly, over and under they
Scatter and collide above the site.
It is not yet 4, not time for her to go
So we stay. We sit. We talk.
We've done our walking for the day,
Had out of our shares and pushed the
Half-empty, half-filled plates away.
(No thank you, not for us)
We've struggled to keep the words
From dribbling helplessly down our chins,
But It's Okay to Not Be Okay now. We know.
Our trouble is we know. On these
Forbidden grounds we know,
We step to hallowed grounds, still
I know, You know. It pays to-- (Nevermind)
Birds, three magpies and a jay, hopped
Between the silences; I felt no guilt.
We talked. Of shame and of our fathers,
Of your cold and my gone-wandering head.
I smell of burnt-up wood. I'm sure, you
Too. Eyes sting, hands numb, but look.
At least we find that I, you, we, are
Not yet, I guess, not quite dead.
sa - ks.
Scatter and collide above the site.
It is not yet 4, not time for her to go
So we stay. We sit. We talk.
We've done our walking for the day,
Had out of our shares and pushed the
Half-empty, half-filled plates away.
(No thank you, not for us)
We've struggled to keep the words
From dribbling helplessly down our chins,
But It's Okay to Not Be Okay now. We know.
Our trouble is we know. On these
Forbidden grounds we know,
We step to hallowed grounds, still
I know, You know. It pays to-- (Nevermind)
Birds, three magpies and a jay, hopped
Between the silences; I felt no guilt.
We talked. Of shame and of our fathers,
Of your cold and my gone-wandering head.
I smell of burnt-up wood. I'm sure, you
Too. Eyes sting, hands numb, but look.
At least we find that I, you, we, are
Not yet, I guess, not quite dead.
sa - ks.