14

Object of Desire

With a hunch-shouldered sigh,
you are always packing a bag and walking away
from a lover
that used to make you happy.
When suddenly, after years
of thoughtful breathing
a lover explodes
like a flower
and through a gash of stars, you see
on an inmost petal,
your neighborhood,
with the whole world's sunlight falling on it.

Embarrassed at your riches,
laughing with tears in your eyes,
you gather a handful of light
to feed the hungry birds.

-Deanna Hopper

selected January 2010