found the narrow way
down a straight road
into the wind's dark blue heart.
There, she found
Athena with her bolts,
wearing a silver-black snake around her arm,
falcon feathers in her hair,
and not much else.
When the storm chaser kissed Athena--
rippling strikes across the sky.
When the storm chaser loved Athena--
hail from the heavens, honey on her thigh.
When the storm chaser got home,
there was no sign of the damage to her car.
She had swapped out the mirrors
and bumped out the dents
herself, at a truck stop in Stephens County.
"Where did you go?"
"Shopping," she said,
with a forked tongue as sure and sweet as tupelo.
_________
really great. and sad, too. heartbreak in the weather forecast, for sure.
ReplyDeleteA very human bite to this, that fits both into myth and more every day reality. k.
ReplyDelete"...into the wind's dark blue heart." So lovely. Love the forked tongue.
ReplyDelete"...as sure and sweet as tupelo." What a way to end a gorgeous poem, Shay.
ReplyDeleteBeen blog-reading all morning--what a sheer pleasure to arrive here and read your words, sure, confident, full of juice--and as always, straight from the pen to the heart of things. I love the image of Athena in snake and feathers--and now we know why people chase storms.
ReplyDeleteLove and love it some more!
ReplyDeleteThis Storm Chaser is quite a gal! We need more of them .... bumping out dents, swapping mirrors ~~ genius!
ReplyDeleteThe simplicity and gravity really appeal to me. As always, your images and ideas delight :-)
ReplyDeleteAloha
Loved the response, Shay. Shopping, indeed! :)
ReplyDelete"into the wind's dark blue heart" loved it! And I 'd love to be a storm chaser too!
ReplyDeleteP.S. Cool song.
The Storm Chaser is not afraid of anything (storm or not), I'm positive.
ReplyDeleteGood to read you this morning, Shay! I have been missing reading my usual blogs in the craziness of grading this past semester....I look forward to catching up again this summer.
Sweet as tupelo - love that line.
ReplyDeletethank god there are still truck stops around!
ReplyDelete♥