Long live the layers of pink
that painted ladies rest on
Sensitive feet trembling tucked
up suddenly taking flight
Hindwings forewings
Long live that instant
of tiny auburn scales
And long live you, tiny eyes, specialized
apprentice of proboscis
learning to draw nectar
and pick up treasured
chemical scents, balance
A wet finger to the air
Long live the blue wind’s
direction, all potential vibrations
that lead ephemeral nerves
to peace and possibility,
to identify plants, to rest in infinity
Long live the soft and sensitive,
the delicate petals’ invitation
Green hope for the multitude
of reasons to lay eggs on and
fly forever in a figure eight
Published in Cider Press Review, Volume 27, Issue 1.
Kaisa Ullsvik Miller (she/her) is a poet and artist from Wisconsin. She is the author of Unspoiled Air (winner of the Motherwell Prize from Fence Books) and has had poetry published or upcoming in South Carolina Review, Ploughshares, Fence, Sugar House Review, HUNGER, deComp, and elsewhere. She also loves to draw and take photos of the prairie where she lives in Wisconsin. You can find her at @kaisamilla.
See all items about Kaisa Ullsvik Miller
