leaf feather petal
kingfisher pomegranate
tanagers splash
kiskadees in the banana leaves
as hummingbirds honeysuckle
Atlantic Rainforest under cobblestones
& industrious ants of all sizes
a long way from cherry blossoms
Chinatown
in the year of the rooster
while crow pigeon sparrow
chase down Grant at Chestnut
past ladies, past dragons
through the oily coffee smoke
roasting beans
& dim sum steam
what call you from your northern garden?
storm petrel
in from the jersey shore
starling longing
a robin mouthful of chubby grubs
her breast so red her eggs so blue
a long way from the cormorants laughing
bobbing in the Pacific tide
oh to the singing, oh to the flying
this is the garden, this the garden
you in yours
and i in mine
and the play of the vines
um beijo santo augustino
á flor
do olho d’água
uma pétala veluda
caiu da corola
num gesto puro de admiração
d’água cintilante
da alegria do vento
pelo desejo de voar
de sentir
molha,
porém, e se afoga
pedindo desculpas da ousadia
ao descer
me desculpa
não acontecerá novamente
restaura-se a pureza do gesto
nos fundos
ao decompor num
solo denso, escuro
de onde mais tarde
é comida
pelos peixes