We Are One

by Hilary Walker

My sister turns in the moonlight
And brushes her hand through rainbow droplets
From the falls thundering past her face.
Her hair whips wet in strands that slew over her eyes,
And snails that wait in the dark come out to slide
And twist in mossy holes amongst the rocks,
Damp with cold bells of crystal water.
 
My mother turns in the moonlight
Her soft silver feet treading silently,
Barely touching the fractured Earth.
Rich summer lust turns to winter memories
Cold despair creeps beneath the cool milky river,
Flooding her dreams with silence.
Standing alone she can hear
A thousand sweet voices flutter and cry
Carrying their slow bird sound far and high.
 
My daughter turns in the moonlight
And walks until dawn to the place
Where shells flower on the shore
And the grass on the dunes whip and bend to the squall.
Cold season gannets ragged fly,
Dip steep, fold, and plunge like arrows
Released from an empty sky.

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