They fall from the trees.
From the trees, the acorns fall.
She gathers them, one by one,
piles them around her in haphazard circles,
organizes them by size, weight, color.
A crop of acorns.
They fall from the trees.
The skulls of the swamp fall,
cracking against the roots of the mangroves.
Doe, buck, kimeti; kiokote, acha, eaglehound --
large and small, smooth and weathered --
eye sockets staring up at the doe with the dark wing
who gathers, gathers
her acorn crop.
From the trees, the acorns fall.
She gathers them, one by one,
piles them around her in haphazard circles,
organizes them by size, weight, color.
A crop of acorns.
They fall from the trees.
The skulls of the swamp fall,
cracking against the roots of the mangroves.
Doe, buck, kimeti; kiokote, acha, eaglehound --
large and small, smooth and weathered --
eye sockets staring up at the doe with the dark wing
who gathers, gathers
her acorn crop.
