hushed wings or

crouched on snag

waiting

master of patience

always requited

 

there is no pretense

wrinkled red head ugly

gnarled, beak a depthless ruby the color

unsnarling entrails of crystallized drying blood

snipping ligament set in a vast field

polishing bone of spiderweb turquoise

a sure, throbbing aperture

deliverance. into the final universe.

light unto darkness.

darkness unto light.

 

dance.

 

the heart, the grace shadow

of freedom.

 

the wondrous flight

from death.