I
after full moon dire times
scattered sleep fathoms of melt
and the resistance of water
I slept
you can only know the thickness of ice
by diving under it
how many times have I lost my life?
have you?
have we?
risk
such deep
and loving
risk
one must be quick
so fast
and we begin to wonder if
and if
we are taking off
on thin ice
maps
from white to blue
a massive calving
the glacier
one million tons twice the size of luxembourg
a profound fracture
a concave face
a picasso
when I was eight
I used to dream
of skating away
not on my ankles
but on blades
so low to the ground
no harm we learn to fall
always a hand
somewhere
reaching
II
when i was eight
they told me the war
was far away
the horizon line
stretching across the earth
vanished into the sky
i knelt on my elbows on the sill
leaning in until my nose touched the screen
and the sea
surfaced silver
the submarines
they said
were offshore
i thought they were headed toward me
the lighthouse keeper
trolling for signs with his telescope
said “distance is far away”
he played the piano
and the water
the sea
resumed