What is Offered
This morning’s counteroffer:
one dead baby snapping turtle,
more tail, nearly, than shell
with one eye missing
in trade for the hangover
from last night’s dream –
the one about your brother
and how he faked his death.
Nothing fake about the turtle’s
but still, you cradle it in the hollow
at the center of your hand, carrying
it to the muddy edge, turning
the one eye toward the water.
Oh, let that one eye looking
see where to go from here,
tail like a rudder,
head swinging side to side
death coming into view –
then the purple asters
bent over and frayed.
by Alexandra Risley Schroeder
from Ecotheo Review
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