I’m just the start of a footnote
In the clear sky, blue still has one shade
Each day, I fly an invisible plane or twirl a lasso
When the old women visit they make up new names
Each name starts in a river, ends in a vowel
The old men tend their fires and horses
The horses drink from the river
The fires burn warm and bright
Every tree holds a single sparrow disguised as a
Glittered angel disguised as a leaf

MIKE JAMES makes his home in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. He has published in hundreds of magazines, large and small, and has performed his poetry at universities and other venues throughout the country. His newest collection, Back Alley Saints at the Tiki Bar, was published in April.