unquenchable

plums melt on linens
washed
just yesterday

the stain
is shaped like her face
she thinks

a fan moves the air
but she has no desire
to rise

she cannot tell
her daughter
about her bed

about her cold
pillow & sweat-
drenched sheets

or how figs
are the only food
worth eating

in august
when all she really wants, really,
is the taste of ash