IF THE POEM IS BROKEN,
HOW CAN THE SUNFLOWERS BREATHE?
They can’t. The desert sunflower,
the slender sunflower,
Nutall’s sunflower,
the Kansas sunflower
and the California sunflower
will all hang their heads.
Stomata will close
on diamond-shaped,
lancelike, and oval leaves.
You must help me keep
the poem intact
to let the sunflowers breathe.
—Lucille Lang Day
____
from the chapbook The Book of Answers, Finishing Line Press (2006)
IN THE FIELD OF THE POEM,
WHEN WILL THE STAR TULIPS OPEN?
When the evening grosbeak emerges,
bright yellow, from a stand of pines
to fly across an open field
in the third line of the poem,
star tulips will appear
in a wet depression by the path.
Fan-shaped petals will open pink,
revealing an oblong gland
with a fringe of golden hairs.
The grosbeak will chirp loudly,
breaking the poem’s silence,
and you, my love, will take my hand.
—Lucille Lang Day
____
from the chapbook The Book of Answers, Finishing Line Press (2006)