Suzette's Swan Poem by Suzette Richards

the King's Game
protected by law
but an aerodynamic
l.a.w
onto itself
the swan's landing approach
an ungainly affair


holding my
b r e a t h
in anticipation of an aborted landing
much like a new
LOVE
affair:
exhilarating but also
apprehensive

the g
l
i
d
i
n
g
into familiar territory
embracing the calm waters
as its natural habitat

lull
a … in the relationship
with nature
and my emotional state
e c h o e d

spurred on by undetermined
external forces
that might have suggested a running l
e
a
p—
dreams take w i n g
on blades that CLEAVE the a I r—
bruised plumose memories
long in the e x h a l i n g …

‘Farewell' dissipates in the swan's strident honking