adamant serpentine
this face
you are
and all its missives
Requires
this climb –
*
light reaches
you
the beach
the teacher
the moment that comes
to admit loss
failure
dues
dust
regrets –
*
you watch a skunk
and you guard your overalls,
what you need to wear
is still your skin
you sit down to pancakes
allow your body its claims,
allow the counter
its complexities
—
John Michael Flynn is currently an English Language Fellow with the US State Department in Khabarovsk, Russia. His most recent poetry collection, Keepers Meet Questing Eyes (2014) is available from Leaf Garden Press. Find him on the web at www.basilrosa.com.