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Poetry

Having seen the osprey
grasp then set its fish
so that en route from sea
to bay prey’s eyes face
only west,
———-having seen,
half sunblind, that glint writhe
then rise to unimagined
heights on nothing but
thin air, one ultimate
kindness before spicule,
tooth, and tongue,
——————-having seen
struggle slacken to repose
as descending on the nest
catch glimpses the caught,
compendium of spine
and gill and jaw agape,
opalescent shambles
shimmering in scales,
———————-I say,
raise me like that, unmaker,
wide eyed and broken backed,
if only so that I, unmade,
might see for once beyond
all doubt those unknown,
unfathomable parts
that are and are not me.

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The Image archive is supported in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts.

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