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Posts Tagged ‘honesuckle’

All at Once

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , on June 15, 2026| Leave a Comment »

Delighted, I plunged my face deep into the bush,
laden as it was with slender trumpeted white flowers 
and I pulled the generous scent into my being. 

“Honeysuckle,” James confirmed, stepping
closer to inhale and for a moment we lingered,
infused with the lavish perfume of June, 

and when we pulled away, he said, “You know, 
the ticks love hanging out in the honeysuckle.” 
We stared at each other then in emerging realization

and began to brush our hands across our bare arms, 
our bare cheeks, our bare necks. Is it true 
every joy has, lurking inside it, an insidious fear? 

I know how beauty calls across the spectrum to its opposite,
how they chime together like meditation bells
inviting us into the all that is. What surprised me 

was the laughter that spilled forward then, 
the way I flopped over at the waist like a rag doll, 
giggling, disgust and mirth mingling, conspiring 

to open me. Long after we walked away, I could still
smell it, the glory of the flowers, how it hung in the air. 
Could still feel it, the fear, how it crawled on my skin 

with its six quick legs. Could still taste it, the laughter 
of friends, how it lingered sweet on my lips, like sugared 
maple, like the juice of ripe berries, like honey.

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