Thirteen Ways of Looking ... — Rachel Jan

THIRTEEN WAYS OF LOOKING AT THE MOON

Rachel Jan

The moon glints in a perfect arc of teeth And so bites the sky II.

Across the red snarl of sunset The moon chases, The curve of it, a hunter’s bow

III.

To the murmur of the millwheel, The oar breaks the moon rippling beneath it IV.

With no exit sign in sight, I point Myself towards the moon instead, Eye seeking forlorn brightest eye V.

My eyes are twin moons Waiting to cataract VI.

In the face of the moon, I see my father, my sister, A rabbit making medicine The root of all the oldest stories An empty porcelain bowl VII.

The night persists, And the moon is full with the weight of waiting

VIII.

At the turn of the moon, The whales turn their pale bellies In ascent, Summit, Dive, the imitation cycle Of all tide-pulled creatures IX.

Then there’s the turning cavity of my chest, which I thought was the moon, as in a crater X.

and lets the moon paint him silver XI.

So tired of illuminating touch, Even the moon, the loneliest daughter, must dream of being reached XII.

Wolf moon. Worm moon. Silent, gleaming moon

XIII.

What is a lullaby But a tenderness given breath Under moonlight?