Up Close

in a tangle of images blue
butterflies mimic the sky
who calls this poetry

yet we will
eat ice cream the whole
summer long

guarded by the guardian
trees and fall down scraping
our knees calling the small

wounds "strawberries."
it is the wind the wind through
the trees or startling the

rose bushes makes us gleam
the way we are to those who love us
pushing off from the swings

and hoping
to see the face
of familiar stars

up close in daylight.

mary angela douglas 15 april 2016