The Wind (In Northern California)

by LittleRedWildflower 04/01/20

Here, damp with brine,
I ease into the nooks of
tall, tall trees, nipping
at loosened bark.

Here, I give breath to giants.
Lungs in search of a heart.
I carry the sea on my back,
the salt and heat,
the blood orange break of
sunrise.

Seldom heard in places less
quiet, at this latitude
I am a song, a mother’s
voice.

And I recall, how once, in
a gray, percussive city,
in the corners between
brick and concrete, I put
my mouth to an
old paper bag,
watching it lift and dance,
watching it breathe with
my breath, alive,
how it rose to the sun,
unnoticed.