i am the moon and i love you
By Parker Snellgrove
i am the moon and i love you
my hands fold into a time-worn cradle
and a tiny egg rests within them
its surface bumpy and shiny
glowing luminously in the safe light
of my exhausted callouses
that whisper their wrinkled words
against the steadfast shell
lullabying its resident to sleep
i am the moon and i love you
the crevices of my lips
paint themselves with a soft but cold
sheen of blue so pale against pink
and they will be gentle
upon the ridge of your cheeks
once they gather the courage
to lean close and open their weak walls
if only to allow you the briefest
look inside of me
i am the moon and i love you
my heart is buried deep within
the heaving ribcage of my cracked-open
chest exposed for payment and punishment
from a bird so lovingly raised to kill
and i look downward hoping to see you
maybe traced in lines of dirt and rock
or sketched above in clouds and stars
but i am always unable to look closely
allowed only to search from far away
and yet still
i am the moon and i love you
The Trinity Review 