Water House 

Emerald Darner Nymph             Speckled Lily Nymph

                             pond & water

                   voiced the Oded

                    seed       head

           *

Pursuit of&               after After &/ anynews from Over

watervoiced i                           [muddy, sweetly              down

crown-shy-river-lighted:
 

have you house&gardenyard?        have you chalicecan?

O        i                                                         O       i

                   O         i

                                              O

rock hound backed & hounding after After           Over

                                                                                       stones

                       ghost

                        pipe

Ought not we have our Over Painteds our Over Lovelys?

hot wand the Yew Signs

may they be maidenfound.                        [rue & violets]

                           [columbine]

Creek Pleasures

Crouching at the bank of a creek:

What's under this rock?

What’s under this rock?

What’s under this rock?

What’s under this rock?

What’s under this rock?

What’s under this rock?

What’s under this rock?

Nothing. Nothing. Nothing. Nothing.

NothingNothingNothing!

& still i was better for it!

 Elise Thi Tran is a writer, poet, and multimedia artist based in Missouri. Her work appears or is forthcoming in APARTMENT, Blackbird, Diode, Copper Nickel, The Kenyon Review, Salt Hill, and elsewhere. Find Elise on Instagram @elise.tran and selections of her work at linktr.ee/elisethi