Among the Brambles

Working through a black- berry patch, you learn a new way to move, step high & slow as a heron, pivot to trample back- wards in your big boots, & lean nimble as a lover into the fiercest thorns to get free. These are not skills of widespread applicability. But one day when the sweat dries & the mosquito’s skirl dwindles to a soft wind in the inner ear, you may find yourself stretching, stretching, stretching for that last sweet berry & wondering why in hell your hand won’t move.