Blood and flesh

 

CathŽdrale st Etienne

You tell me to crawl

into the ragged slash

in your side and pull

the raw edges of flesh

together to enclose me

in the gory warmth of

your heartbeat, like

a babe at the breast,

like a love flesh to

flesh on damp sheets,

like reentering the womb,

like surrendering to the

formless white at the heart

of water, air, ore, sky,

plant, sun, star, cloud,

moon, blood and flesh.

 

Patrick T. Reardon

7.25.18

 

“Blood and Flesh” was originally published by Ground Fresh Thursday 9.23.17.

Written by : Patrick T. Reardon

For more than three decades Patrick T. Reardon was an urban affairs writer, a feature writer, a columnist, and an editor for the Chicago Tribune. In 2000 he was one of a team of 50 staff members who won a Pulitzer Prize for explanatory reporting. Now a freelance writer and poet, he has contributed chapters to several books and is the author of Faith Stripped to Its Essence. His website is https://patricktreardon.com/.

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