Karen Audioun Klingman
Do you remember?
late fall
sometime before your 4th birthday
sun low in the sky
hanging there
just hanging on
as if deciding whether
or not to settle
into bruised sunset
did you smell
scarlet smoke of dried leaves
burning from a basket-like urn
into afternoon light
did you see
me looking out from
the kitchen window
through the pussy willow tree
at you, barely holding
Zip against your chest
your winter coat open on such
a warm autumn day
did you feel
his body wiggle
fur slip through
your grasp
did you hear
the pain
a whimper
before the quiet
that lasted decades
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