Leaves singing their mourning song
beneath my weight after the betrayal
of the seasons' petals –
falling as men
falling back in my hometown
from the top of the parking deck; men–
falling as petals
falling from their places amongst the roses
in my grandmother's greenhouse.
Both calling home to ground.
I forgive annihilation.
I forgive eradication.
I forgive termination, cessation, exhumation,
and I forgive myself
for ever being foolish enough
to believe that death owed me
an apology in the first place.
*Ashes to ashes, dust to dust
