A wiser man would have
hedged on the beast
I put the water on for tea
and forgot it there, the precious heat
now tepid and useless,
a dog without teeth
We got older than predicted
in the cards of our youth
A velvet box full of photographs
glossy and mute
Half a page in, I recognized it was you
some words are for burning
and some you pass through
and when we step around
the scourge laid in full view
I can see it coming but
at least you’re there too
Rachel Browne 