1 Poem & 2 Photos by Emily Strauss

The Wind Stops Sometimes

the wind stopped after dark
and stars shone among the pine's
branches, winked into existence
and out again

the lack of wind gave them
whiter expression
the lack of wind toned the night
blacker, fed the sleep deeper

pushed the body further
down into itself
and later
when the wind returned

I rose with it under the stars
through the pines
out into dawn
over the lake bed

Bionote

Emily Strauss has an M.A. in English, but is self-taught in poetry. Over 200 of her poems appear in hundreds of online venues and in anthologies. The natural world is generally her framework; she often focuses on the tension between nature and humanity, using concrete images to illuminate the loss of meaning between them. She is a semi-retired teacher living in California.