At the botanical gardens
they strolled casually together
delighting in the exotic--flowers
resembling birds, birds the flight
of flowers. The air was thick and hot.
He lifted long hair off the nape of her
neck, blew coolness. “Who,” she asked,
turning to him,“do you love best?”
Patrice Vecchione is the author of Writing and the Spiritual Life: Finding Your Voice Within and a collection of poems, Territory of Wind. The editor of many acclaimed anthologies for adults and young people, her newest Faith & Doubt is forthcoming from Henry Holt in Spring 2007. Patrice teaches poetry to children through her program The Heart of the Word: Poetry and the Imagination. She also practices the art of collage.