Animals

Elegy for my son.

I keep your bones
in a jar
beside my bed
because
although i know
you are with me
and all around me
like light
and air
fluttering, moth-like
in and out
of my days
touching me
with ephemeral fingers
like sunlight
on my face
Still, we are animals
and i miss your warm
soft skin
Your forest fire eyes
Your mercurial laughter
and your hard embrace
And i am
an animal
with an animal’s pain
and a mother’s ache
You have become
distant as the moon
And i howl
to the very heavens
for the empty space
you left beside me
Oh child,
shine your light
on me
when i run
wild
through my life
Teeth bared
in the hunt
Because i am still
caught
by the beat of
this heart
swimming in the blood
that binds me here
And you ethereal
you are everywhere
and nowhere
you are inside
this heart
and running
through my veins
Your voice
indistinguishable
from mine
as i cry
your name
the lone mother
flying across the earth
chasing you through the sky
as night chases
the fading day