Dave Malone

Autumn Float

Dave Malone

We make the gravel bar before dusk. Our kayaks groan with as much wearied muscle as our own. Fire is first, and driftwood disappears in air as blue flame then ash.

We decide against tents, those nylon slivers made to resist evening wind and rain. We would rather face the flood of stars above the bluff.

After fish and scotch and fire, sleeping bags form around us while we chat then stop because the river shares a secret

in a low constant whoosh that hushes owl and coyote, and ushers us into the arms of slumber.

Poet and filmmaker Dave Malone lives in the Missouri Ozarks. His latest poetry volume is Tornado Drill (Aldrich Press, 2022), and his poems have appeared in Plainsongs, San Pedro River Review, and Delta Poetry Review. He can be found online at davemalone.net or via Instagram @dave.malone.