-for MG
For this journey, forget practical things.
Begin with touch and smell, silk and mohair
bird feathers, silver frog for joy, comb
of bone and amber beads. The red hat
bought in Jerusalem on a day no rockets
fell on that city. Little bag with lavender
and rose petals. A pinch of salt. Maybe
some French brandy for sudden
exquisite eruptions of despair. Never pack
an alarm clock since borders are alarming
enough. Pack rhythms and the cadences,
the dominant pedal tone. I like the heron
flying east, legs stretched out, head pulled in,
for speed. I never pack my blue jeans—
prefer to wear them when I leave. I get
enthusiastic. I see my life like a clear, if stony,
brook. I close the suitcase and put it in my closet.
Better to go light! Never know what you’ll meet.
Swedish-born Gunilla Theander Kester, Ph.D. and Fulbright Scholar, is the author and editor of six books in three genres including her full-length poetry book If I Were More Like Myself. In the last couple of years she has written and published over 60 poems in various literary magazines including The American Journal of Poetry, Citron Review, Pirene’s Fountain, Paterson Literary Review, and The Potomac Review. Her new book-length poetry collection—Hold Me Still—is looking for a publisher. She lives outside Buffalo N.Y. where she teaches classical guitar.
