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The mysteries of moving water
any arbour
in a storm
the gnarls
are channels
in the bark
a tree outstretched
invites the fire
down through
every rotten scar
closer to the core
a lightning strike
a heavy rain
rending the cruciform
of her arms
just by its weight
Magdalena
did you spread
yourself open
too far did
you let the rain
of grace tear
you apart
did your leaves
tremble beneath
the wind of something
they called a greater
love
residual
what pollutants
can I trace to you
toxic tenant?
right here
the very year
your forest fire
emolliated tender cambium
a little circle scar
but the rings
kept forming
growing over
the ember
still resident in my tissue
Miranda Lynn Barnes is a poet from the US living near Nottingham, England. Her debut pamphlet, Blue Dot Aubade, was published with V. Press in 2020. Formulations, a chapbook of new poetic forms based in chemistry, was co-written with Stephen Paul Wren and published in March 2022 (Small Press/Tangent Books). Her poem ‘In the Pines’ was awarded second place in the Verve Poetry Competition 2023, judged by Forward Prize winner Kim Moore. Miranda’s poems are widely published in journals and anthologies, both in the UK and abroad. Find out more at https://mirandalynnbarnes.wordpress.com/
Copyright © 2025 by Miranda Lynn Barnes, all rights reserved. This text may be used and shared in accordance with the fair-use provisions of Copyright law. Archiving, redistribution, or republication of this text on other terms, in any medium, requires the notification of the journal and consent of the author.
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