To fall for a person
With hands of bird bone
That quiver and flutter
And like water, break stone

        Winter blankets branches
        It asks
        Does frost taste bitter or sweet?

One step forward,
One retreat
Each step stepping
On someone’s feet

        If I held those hands
        It asks
        Would it taste bitter or sweet?

Don’t hold birds;
Watch them flit from trees  
And come and go
as they please

winter up the moonlight
you ask, a little less close?
yes, when you are ready
we will take up the train
until then we wait
hauntingly with ghosts
on our shoulders until
we feel certain.

when the next day cracks
bright and you see
that i am still
not a bird ready
to fly the nest,
that is when you will
rest easy, with me.

until then let’s watch the moon

watch how she stays
in one place,
yet follows us all
along the way.

I can do that too.