how love manifests in famine or storm
how the revelry of warmth
moves beyond ecstasy
into
necessity, and
sensuality morphs
into
desperation.
Let no love poem ever come to this threshold
but move easefully back
into the cradling memory of firsts
first gleam
first kiss
not a thought given to
survival, only the
unabashed rapture
of firsts
Marie Marchand is the Poet Laureate of Ellensburg, WA. In this civic role, she gives readings and workshops, inspiring individuals to use poetry as an arts modality for self-revelation and community building. Her poetry has been published in Crannóg Magazine, Catamaran Literary Reader, California Quarterly, Tikkun Magazine, San Diego Poetry Annual, and The Awakenings Review. Her book Gifts to the Attentive was published in 2022. Read more at mishiepoet.com and follow her @mishiepoet.