ASH

Hurried feet                                                                                                    press into her skin–

Eyes pressed forward.

Bodies pulsing                                                                                                      in hunger.                                                                                                             in thirst.                                                                                                                in need.

lush green.                                                                                                  sunlight.                                                                                                             she nourishes.  

She fills the sieve,                                                                                           even as it slowly leaks.

Satiated. 

Yet–

they missed her ash.

Charred branches–                                                                                        what was survived.

Roots braided beneath the soil                                                                exposed like                                                                                                  bones of a buried saint.

illusion burns.                                                                                                   love rises.

in the exhale                                                                                                        of ash.