Before learning of my grandmother’s impending death,
I meet desolation
on an island in the sky. After Mesa Arch
hiccups sunset, light alters
the distance between mountains
and canyons. My tour guide app
whispers of erosion, bridges suddenly
collapsing in the night. Families once
lived among these crags.
Now a lone goat grazes
between the rocks.
***
Alex Gurtis is a poet and critic whose work has appeared or is forthcoming in Autofocus, Barrelhouse, The Shore, HAD, Rejection Letters, Saw Palm and others. A ruth weiss Foundation Maverick Poet Award Finalist, Alex received his MFA from the University of Central Florida and is the co-owner of the independent bookstore, Zeppelin Books.
***
image: Claire Cantrell
Rejection Letters 