Flame

By C. D. Wright b. 1949

the breath the trees the bridge

the road the rain the sheen

the breath the line the skin

the vineyard the fences the leg

the water the breath the shift

the hair the wheels the shoulder

the breath the lane the streak

the lining the hour the reasons

the name the distance the breath

the scent the dogs the blear

the lungs the breath the glove

the signal the turn the need

the steps the lights the door

the mouth the tongue the eyes

the burn the burned the burning

C.D. Wright, "Flame" from Steal Away: Selected and New Poems (Copper Canyon Press, 2002).

Source: Steal Away: Selected and New Poems (Copper Canyon Press, 2002)

Biography

C.D. Wright was born in the Ozark Mountains of Arkansas, the daughter of a judge and a court reporter. She has published over a dozen books, including Rising, Falling, Hovering (2008); Like Something Flying Backwards: New and Selected Poems (2007); and a text edition of One Big Self: An Investigation (2003), a project she undertook with photographer Deborah Luster to document Louisiana inmates. She has also published several . . .

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