Gaia Holmes
Constellations
Somewhere in the middle of a poem
you draw the shape of the plough
on the stickleback ridges
of my spine.
There is no first line
to explain the beginning.
We start at the centre
and our wicked history melts away
like butter.
Later we walk outside.
The late air slaps us into sobriety
and you stop me by the factory
to point out the night's constellations
with your artist's finger.
I am not like you.
I don't need to give everything a title.
I want to leave this open
and as wide as the sky.
There is no last line
to explain the end.
I want to see the stars as stars.
you draw the shape of the plough
on the stickleback ridges
of my spine.
There is no first line
to explain the beginning.
We start at the centre
and our wicked history melts away
like butter.
Later we walk outside.
The late air slaps us into sobriety
and you stop me by the factory
to point out the night's constellations
with your artist's finger.
I am not like you.
I don't need to give everything a title.
I want to leave this open
and as wide as the sky.
There is no last line
to explain the end.
I want to see the stars as stars.
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