I enter the lot of the lighthouse on foot,
see a sign for a tidal flats replenishment project,
and in my path a sudden plover, dashing
from one patch of beach grass
to another across the graveled road.
I nearly catch its bones beneath my heel.
Beside the jetty, swifts soar and arc—
winged hearts swooping and almost convergent
before they dip away from me in mirrored swoon.
I interrupt paths with my presence.
I, I, I.
—
Rebecca Hart Olander’s poetry and collaborative visual and written work has appeared in print, online, and in multiple anthologies. A winner of the Women’s National Book Association Poetry Award, her books include Dressing the Wounds (dancing girl press, 2019) and Uncertain Acrobats (CavanKerry Press, 2021), named an Eric Hoffer Book Award Category Finalist and a Must-Read selection by the Massachusetts Center for the Book. Rebecca is a writing teacher and the editor/director of Perugia Press.
