the referencing of rain
as the inbred cousin
of disaster
recklessly
breeding babies
given the names
of diseases
i can’t help.

here, no notions
of amber waves
no bombs that burst
like they do
over there

here, bombs
deconstruct dams
decimate pride
homogenize
neighborhoods
and otherwise act
as agents
of social control.

ii

she had corn rows
planted neatly
in the halo of her hair
this student
pupil of my bluest
eye.
she called me mr.
while i had visions
of seeing her verse
in the new yorker.

last time she
tsunami’d by
laughter left her
breathless
brown eyes watering
like she had oceans
behind them.

iii

she doesn’t.
as grand and beastly
as it is
the mississippi is just
a river
which, if ingested,
bursts capillaries
hearts
dreams.