I
bone to bone:
that small lucite box
of mouse remains
spiked mandibles
random femurs
once the owl’s meal—
I stole the stinky fewmets
from the school belfry
and picked apart
this evidence of success
II
bone to powder:
cow + pig + sheep + chicken
the stench and noise exorcized
long gone to tables
the bone + offal cooked + crushed
now from this tidy plastic bag
into spring roses + day lilies
in the garden
where I spend my life
III
bone to stone:
the weird life forms
archaeopteryx
trilobite
brachiosaur
flying + swimming + roaming
die a million ways
fall into silt
pressured by time
now with pick + brush—
I read those stories
in roadcuts + deserts + quarries
IV
bone to ash:
seven pounds
more or less
cooled in a plain cardboard box
more, no break
and taken to the sea’s verge—
I sift slowly
mismatched pieces and grey powder—
memories + tears—
here’s the honeycombed shard
of her hip
where I rode
dreaming of stars