sea turtle

by Alex Stolis

I dreamed we released a lost sea turtle 

back into the ocean, heavy to heft,

we alternated carrying him, determined 

to bring him home; 

a gentle back and forth dance, the rhythm

of us in time with the waves.

The sun was van Gogh yellow, we laughed 

at the challenge before us,

the smell of salt, the pounding of surf,

a paddling reptile, a prayer.

Today, my first cancer treatment, you took 

my hand; your turn to hold the weight.

Alex Stolis lives in Minneapolis. His full-length collection, Postcards from the Knife-Thrower was runner-up for the Moon City Poetry Prize in 2017. Two full-length collections Pop. 1280, and John Berryman Died Here were released by Cyberwit and are available on Amazon. His chapbook, Postcards from the Knife-Thrower's Wife is forthcoming from Louisiana Literature Press in 2024.