Daily the pieces come together.
Blossoms unpeel themselves
from thread-knot hearts.
Dead eggs warm and quiver.
Soon. Soon. The signs unclose
with the swelling moon.
Wash black dirt from the folds
of your fingers. Lay fresh linen
on the bed. Wait. You already
know the way of this.
The path unpaving over its hill,
the stream running backward
past your door. It is time.
Open your mouth wide enough
to scream or to swallow whole
whatever unspeakable gift will come.
Jacqueline West’s poetry has appeared in Mythic Delirium, Strange Horizons, Liminality, Enchanted Living, and Star*Line. Her first full-length collection, Candle and Pins: Poems on Superstitions, was released in 2018 (Hiraeth Publishing). She is also the author of the NYT-bestselling middle grade series The Books of Elsewhere, the YA horror novel Last Things, and several other award-winning books for young readers. A three-time nominee for both the Rhysling Award and the Pushcart Prize, Jacqueline lives with her family in Red Wing, Minnesota. Find her at jacquelinewest.com or on IG at jacqueline.west.writes.
photo by Jacalyn Beales (via unsplash)
Crow & Cross Keys 