I become leaf-watcher,
stalking the crimson and bronze,
the ochre and russet and gold.
I nod to the last purple asters
like elegies of stars,
and the plate-wide sunflowers
bowed to ground like priests retired.
On my way along the prairie paths,
I pick the silks of the split
milkweed pods; weave them
with my thoughts in the turning air.
Andrea Potos
Andrea Potos is author of several poetry collections, including most recently Her Joy Becomes (Fernwood Press). Other books include Marrow of Summer (Kelsay Books), Mothershell (Kelsay Books), A Stone to Carry Home (Salmon Poetry), An Ink Like Early Twilight (Salmon Poetry), We Lit the Lamps Ourselves (Salmon Poetry), and Yaya’s Cloth (Iris Press). Her poems can be found widely in print and online, most recently in The Sun, Poetry East, One Art, Braided Way, How to Love the World: Poems of Gratitude and Hope (Storey Publishing), and The Path to Kindness (Storey Publishing). Andrea lives in Madison.
Portage Magazine 