Enough Beauty in This World
Someone on Twitter asks us to recall
the most beautiful place we’d ever seen. I said Earth,
because I’ve never been to another planet.
I’m exhausted & dirty & abandoned &
I still said Earth. Floating at the helm of my lonely seabed,
I survey the damage, the centuries of neglect,
& whisper Earth. Married to sheepskin, to the elk herd,
to Sundays with only the radio for company, I vow
to love my only mother. I’ve been handed moments,
small & large. I’ve wandered many places & each one stunning:
Miami, Kabul, Dubrovnik, Seattle. I’ve traveled by plane,
by ferry, on the Jetstream. I’ve trekked barefoot in ballet flats.
I’ve walked for days in the desert with only a blanket for water.
All of this, just to remind myself I live here. & still, I say Earth.
by Risa Denenberg from Rain/Dweller (MoonPath Press, 2023)
Cover art by Jayne Marek
Buy link: https://risadenenberg.com
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