trees and boats

by Tempest Miller

Trees on boats 

nurserymen on waves 

the orchard showered in squall 

the vineyard of a rustling gunwale 

wood bark spray 

spurted from a handsaw of death 

stranded on the sea for five years 

dreaming like a prisoner 

of a degenerate kiss on a dockland 

I smell castle stone 

and bear fur on the quayside  

I smell it still like  

I smell the green mountains 

of youth 

and snow on my bare arm 

I look at the sky wretched-faced 

a face as a bed 

with the duvet flung all about

Tempest Miller (he/him) is an LGBTQ+ writer from the UK. His work has appeared in Boats Against the Current, Swamp Pink and JAKE. His debut chapbook, England 2K State Insekt, was released in February 2024.