I don't think of her as woman, or man,
just as I don’t gender sunlight
on my face the first coatless spring day,
or wind lacing the waves.
The particular beauty of her eyes and gait,
the tilt of her head as she listens,
exist in a realm evolved beyond any words I know—
soul beyond any description of rose or peony—
the way she tends me as one would a flower,
so my leaves droop and petals wither
when she is away from me.
Laura Foley is the author of six poetry collections, including WTF, Joy Street, Syringa and Night Ringing. Her poem “Gratitude List” won the Common Good Books poetry contest judged by Garrison Keillor; “Nine Ways of Looking at Light” won the Joe Gouveia Outermost Poetry Contest, judged by Marge Piercy. A palliative care volunteer, mother of three grown children and two granddaughters, she lives with her wife and two dogs among the hills of Vermont.
