ONCE
sunlight splashed
like wine across
our table
where you knelt
at work on
crayon glyphs
announcing
your creations
two by two
Spiral!
Spiral!
Words turning
to songbirds
in your mouth
dancing helix
to my ear
one sparrow then
a second
lifting in defiance
of the arrow
shot by time,
radiant and free
Catherine Gander lives in Ireland, and is a literary critic, scholar, poet, and artist. Her work is published or forthcoming in a number of journals and books, including One Hand Clapping, Juniper, Poetry Ireland Review, Wolf Poetry Magazine, and the Irish Times.