Snuffle
pig. Creaky pink
door. Crumblefoot.
Chubbery bean. Gurgler.
And Paul says, the very thing
that would destroy a fish
is its desire to graze
on the hills like sheep.
When I pick you up
your eyes go agog
startled and smiling
and nowhere
are our animals more
evident. I rest you manifold
in the hollow of my palm
and now here
I am standing on the other
side of death, throat
open as a singing door, you
the one who puts us
here, here, the grounding where
I fear not life and love
the living.