Weigh down my pockets with

smooth rocks and pebbles

I collect

on my way down the shore,

wild swimming or slow sinking

frigid water running over

toes that balance

on a jagged floor.

I can hear the gulls cry and

I wonder if they know,

what I’ve seen or

where I plan to go?

Whale skull with a

family of wagtails

chirping where it used

to think.

I wonder which creatures

would choose me for

a nest,

is there space within

these cavities for

something good to grow?

Canary yellow and

singing in a hollow

in my chest, gripping

ribs like branches,

twisting in the wind

autumn to winter to autumn

to winter

summer seems a

promise,

made by a liar with

questionable intentions.

I will close my eyes

until April comes and

I can feel it thaw,

all

that has been frozen

to protect from

some imagined harm.