Every Morning My Father Walks the Lake Path
Tina Egnoski
Agitate kingfisher, shoal bass, the lipglossed kiss me, kiss me petals of nymphaeamexicana— native Floridian. Silver-plated minnows and bluegill obey his shadow.
Once a boy, he rose at first light, milked Brown Swiss. He collected eggs, snapped chicken necks. On the walk to school another sacrifice: dead racer on pitchfork tines. Instinct—to convey, preserve. To trespass.
In stagnate water, the blue heron curtsy, witness.
Tina Egnoski is a poet and fiction writer. Her work has appeared in a number of literary journals, including Cimarron Review, Folio, Hawaii Pacific Review and Louisville Review. She’s the author of two books, In the Time of the Feast Flowers (Texas Review Press, 2011) and Perishables (Black Lawrence Press, 2010).