Seven Ways in Which the Forest of Desire Closes in Upon Itself (poetry)
Seven Ways in Which the Forest of Desire Closes in Upon Itself
- I was not a woodcutter,
who cleared this path for you.
You were no damsel in distress,
feigning interest in cool shadows.
- Once, we circled an empty well.
Much later, I returned:
The cistern was still dry.
- Hansel’s hands drop hints like breadcrumbs:
Gretel is far too savvy.
- Repulsion is in the eye
of the Beholder.
Better the eye should close.
- In the lake at the end of the forest,
my reflection was beautiful.
You never saw me there.
- Six is the number of womankind,
the number of times I waited,
the decades I’ll walk this path.
- As I returned from the forest,
a fat, red moon rose
over the country road.
I sailed it like a balloon
until every treetop in the forest
whispered secrets far beneath me
I no longer craned to hear.