Overripe daybreak
Against sun-starved lids:
You fill my first consciousness.
With somnolent surprise I turn
To find you glowing, grass-scented,
Resplendent remember-whens.

Gaia, forgive me my freefall delight,
Neglecting the million small hurts
Behind your brazen beaming
Only-ever-almost healing,
Insidious symptoms of worse.

Gaia, I’m trying to understand
How deep the damage lies,
How letters and flowers fall fragile, forgotten,
On blossoming bruises denied.

Yet on days like these,
Exquisite in-spite-of-because-of disease,
When your unhoped-for song breaks my winter cares
My heart cannot help but swell
To think of things too long-past to long for,
To imagine that all is well.