A tangle of blueberry stars is breathing
by Martin Willitts Jr
Poetry
A tangle of blueberry stars is breathing —
fistfuls of dampening light.
Like an answer,
someone enters your room,
offers you a hug, and all the mean edges
fade, all stars seem closer,
almost touchable, all the words
you hear will almost heal you,
and everything will be alright.
​
​
​
***
Belief has strangeness —
we either believe in something we cannot prove;
or we believe there is nothing beyond us.
Assuredly, there are some grey areas,
but overall, these are the general categories
dividing us formally and informally.
We want a certainty that is never going to be there.
I rushed my hands and lips over my wife
to make sure she was real,
and the shape of her murmured
some words half-awake, half-asleep,
uncertain it was me, if I was real,
and we both knew peace.
​
​
***
This world is casual and simple,
yet words cannot say
what needs to be said. The world
is not waiting for me to describe it;
it keeps performing small miracles
and everyday occurrences,
as if nothing, nothing at all, is unusual
or disquieting about what the world does,
like it was all laid out beforehand,
pre-planned, and was waiting
for someone to take notice.
to say what needed to be said.
About the Author
Martin Willitts Jr has 20 chapbooks including the winner of the Turtle Island Quarterly Editor’s Choice Award, “The Wire Fence Holding Back the World” (Flowstone Press, 2017), plus 11 full-length collections including “The Uncertain Lover” (Dos Madres Press, 2018), and “Home Coming Celebration” (FutureCycle Press, 2019).