Japanese Maples

113 total words    

<1 minutes of reading

Autumn wind rushes up

around the stones and

bones of your sleep like

currents of blood in your

veins of branches,

like breath whispering

ten thousand invitations

for your leaves to dance.

Your leaves of stars are

the colors of red foxes,

golden lion tamarins

and yellow warblers.

It is the birds who

love you most, who

remember each year your

luminousness and fly the Earth

to rest in the fire of your arms.

Whether you are a maple named

Bloodgood; or Crimson Queen;

Fireglow; Ever Red; Garnet;

or Burgundy Lace,

birds will sing for you

their sweet music

about your melodies of light,

about your long life

on the hill of imagination.

  • Lisa Couturier

    Lisa Couturier is the author of The Hopes of Snakes (Beacon) and Animals / Bodies (Finishing Line). A 2012 Pushcart Prize winner in the essay category, she is a notable essayist in Best American Essays, 2004, 2006, 2011. Find more at lisacouturier.com 

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