i am no stranger to longing
and no stranger to beauty
for somehow one is never without the other
and it binds my heart into knots
with its quiet perfection
the slow bands of colored sunrise
seeping into my awe-widened eyes
like your cherry breath slipping into my skin
sweet and delicious
somewhere in this misty maze
is a cold diamond heart
and i must transform it, melt it
with my love, so that its light
becomes unfrozen and is released
purified and born again into the world
this is the lion’s task
the winter’s inheritance
the caged song of solomon
let us hope we catch the tune