by Lisa Eve Cheby

The day is not a particularly original gifter, presents what is
always already there, little notes waiting to be noticed by a distracted lover:

one morning I hear the telegram of city birds over a rhythm
section of rubber and asphalt, and today, I open
my window on a saffron and sage watercolor of mountains.

Sometimes, maybe mid-day, the unequal bittersweet orange
climbs a parking lot wall and the evening, between the city lights,
hangs a newly incised moon in case I remember
to look or, if I venture out of the reach of hot tubs and casinos and Trader Joe’s
hours and acres bundled with juniper and calico and Mojave yucca are offered.

One day in April, a field of senna armata is left.
Then, on the day I feel most lonely, a forest of teddybear cholla.

How can I not wonder at my blessings: a bouquet of mini calla lilies
in yellow, lavender and white, as the poinsettia continues to sing red.

Lisa Eve Cheby’s poems, essays, and reviews have appeared in various journals including The Rumpus, Tidal Basin Review, A cappella Zoo, TAB, Entropy, and Role/Reboot. Lisa’s poems are also found in the anthologies Drawn to Marvel, The Burden of Light, Coiled Serpent, and Full. Her first book, Love Lessons from Buffy the Vampire Slayer, is available from Dancing Girl Press and was featured in The Wardrobe’s Best Dressed Series. She was a 2017 Writer in Residence at SAFTA’s Firefly Farms Residency. Lisa has an MFA from Antioch and an MLIS from SJSU. http://lisacheby.wordpress.com