by Barbara Siegel Carlson

As Queen Anne’s lace stirs
in a late day summer breeze
along one side of the bog road,
each tiny petal on the wheel
opens its cup to the wind,
and the green nests
of the not-yet bloomed
cling to their weave
around this secret emptiness
whose breath only seems
still and dark,
while on the other side
of the road blond weeds
ripple and stream.

Barbara Siegel Carlson the author of three collections of poetry: What Drifted Here (Cherry Grove 2023),Once in Every Language (Kelsay 2017), and Fire Road (Dream Horse 2013). Her translations, essays and poetry have appeared in Verse Daily, The Cortland Review, Mid-American Review & others. Carlson is co-editor of poetry in translation at Solstice. She lives in Carver, Massachusetts.