Climbing the waterfall because we’re
Halfway between
City kid and the kind of
Rural that knows train tracks so it felt like the
Wrong way up a slide and a
Bit like praying to the creek all at the same time
Because intersectional means a
Few different things less
Binary than
Kaleidoscope
Biome
Burying beetles and big museums and
Fishing in a poisoned watershed
When we
Went to look at the ruin of
Dad’s hometown there
Were no frogs by the pond
Not one there must be frogs
Somewhere but not where I
Expect them anymore the
Hawk and I both knew
Even if we’d never met but who knows
Could be our families go way back I’m
Related to most of that
Abandoned town through my dad’s aunt if the
Turtle story is true
Related to most things along the Neosho some kind of way it’s
Hard how we can’t be who we really are anymore
Not outside at least but I
Might float a few words down the river
Even if they swapped out the bridge and I swear the
Cicadas are singing a different note but my
Heart still beats like
Frogsong a memory I will hold will use to pump
Blood will
Share in poem
Whispered quiet we’ll see if it floats if it
Winds up in Grand Lake if it
Sings back
—
Kim Shuck is the 7th Poet Laureate of San Francisco. Shuck’s latest books are Pick a Garnet to Sleep In and a two person chapbook with Denise Low called Deer / A-wi.
