is a movie about the law of nature,
something we know
something about. You
send me a picture
of a scorpion riding a frog,
and I say I don’t want to drown.
Still, I hold my hollow breath until
my chest rises like the moon.
I flatten again soon, into
a tarot card you drew, then, surprised,
put back down. Should we concede
there’s no such thing as magic
which isn’t beast or snake or shark?
I need to be devoured, per
my nature, but you spurn water
for dark hours—forsaken grounds.
— Stephanie Yue Duhem is writing out of Austin, TX. She can be found online at www.sydpoetry.com.