ruth

at the chicago botanic garden
i remember clinging to your red coat
as we walked through the summer stillness
marigold petals catching in your hair

i remember clinging to your red coat
you laughed bird-voiced, young again
marigold petals catching in your hair
until you forgot why you were laughing

you laughed bird-voiced, young again
you called me miss america shining
until you forgot why you were laughing
botanical names slipped from your mind

you called me miss america shining
the roses smoldered in incandescence
family names slipped from your mind
as you peeled back birch bark

the roses smoldered in incandescence
the thorns dismembered the rose vulnerable
as you peeled back birchbarked decades
returning to 1936 a red vinyl diner booth

the thorns dismembered and rose vulnerable
i remember how you cried on your birthday
returning to 1936 a red vinyl diner booth
the leaves of the candles fluttering

remember how you cried on my birth
your wild tears I bloomed from salt-stung
the leaves of the candles fluttered out
playing dress-up, your engagement ring

your wild tears    salt-stung   i bloomed
up from the roots of our     fused dreaming
playing dress-up, your engagement ring fit me
you wore a red-beaded Mardi Gras giveaway

uprooting   our    fused    dreaming
the IV   floral of breath mints   infused  fluorescent air
you wore   a Mardi Gras giveaway       at the hospital
you hallucinated a   squirrel leapt   across your bed

the ivy floral of mints infused your    red coat   left behind
in the garden    winterlight      watery     you rose
your smile luminesced     a squirrel leapt   over a bed of leaves
into the sky      transcending the trees    salt-stung
i inherit     your warmth   shining