by Alan S. Bridges and Michael Dylan Welch
First published in Mariposa #52, Spring/Summer 2025, page 29. Originally written in March of 2023 by email.
the way water
slowly carves a duck
driftwood Alan
uncle’s chess set
still half-finished Michael
near the beaver lodge
a quarter moon cut-gnawed
from a poplar tree Alan
filling the filigree
of the painted lady
afternoon sun Michael
the lost art
of making charcoal Alan
end of the day . . .
my whittling whistle
a little slower Michael