A trace of baked apples
and coastlines
Meredith’s most cherished possession
A bicycle
Purple and patterned
She grips high handlebars with high hopes
When the sun leaves a lasting impression
in the water
She pedals fast towards chimneys
flooding with smoke
Toward spongy grass and
midnight porch swings
Her only fear is drowning-
not in water
In innocence, in indifference
Dying without a purpose,
dying without a name
The palms whistle her name
as the sun sets and
the moon howls
She lets the shower soak her skin
Then sits at the corner of her bed
nocturnally
She dreams of waterfalls taller than God and
waves wider than wind
She sells italian ice
in a ball cap with
her toes curled in the sand
She’ll never leave