VII
twenty-six thousand three hundred and thirteen
let this be the morning
of the end of the world
what’s left to be ruined
but the rest of us?
already, the mussels
by the millions—
this bears repeating:
millions
cracked open, ashore,
cooked under the sun
until dead, then more
the slew of seastars—
don’t forget: dead ones,
and thousands—
tumbling in the wash,
serving only to disturb
the near-boiled sandpipers
in the shallows,
in their search for any
not-yet-rotted insects
the dead, at least, insist
on remaining countable
at least this
twenty-six thousand five hundred and ninety-eight
The Republic of Home is available from The Blasted Tree Store
Featured by The Blasted Tree: August 6, 2022
Leslie Joy Ahenda
Contributing Author
The Republic of Home by Leslie Joy Ahenda is a Blasted Tree original collection of poetry.
ISBN [Digital]: 978-1-987906-92-9
Cover Design by Kyle Flemmer