Emi Alley

Snow Goose
 
I will meet you up in Juneau.
We made a promise I can't break.
I remember standing with you, 
shadows gray on the grave-still lake.
 
When the night fell,
dense as diamond,
like an island, I was alone.
Here, it’s either black or golden.
You’re burnt, or you’re frozen,
mineral-cold.
 
Snow goose, angel,
you’d call me and I’d cry.
I’m not soft, like a feather,
and I can’t leave this earth to fly.
 
She’ll give you comfort,
of this I’m certain,
and in her curtained eyes you’ll see
the black-lit moon, a cloud of stars —
amazing things I’ll never be.
 
So I’ve flown north, to the gray-choked shore,
to stand a sentry on the rocks.
I’ll wait a spell, then just one more,
a bird alone, without a flock.

Originally from the Seattle area, Emi Alley moved to Vancouver, BC in 2006. After completing her education and meeting her husband, Emi moved to Hartford, CT, where she is now a Classics professor at Trinity College. An avid poet, song-writer and artist in her free time, she has recently begun devoting more time to honing her literary craft. Her poetry, which integrates classical allusions, explores the themes of war, loss, and gender in the contemporary world.