walking through the cincinnati nature center

by Ashley Kirkland

My husband says he’ll be the first 

to go. I’d be so lonely. I don’t say it,

but I hope I get to see him again

when our bodies quit. We named

our kids on walks like this – early 

morning searching the clear air

for words and names, full of hope

for everything beginning inside 

me. Now we walk, discussing death

in a year where we lost so much

and all we can come up with is 

that nothing happens when we die. 

Should I bring my boots 

or let my feet stay bare?

Ashley Kirkland is a poet from Ohio where she lives with her husband and sons. Her work can be found in HAD, Major7thMagazine, The Citron Review, English Journal, and Cordella Press, among others. Her chapbook, Bruised Mother, is available through boats against the current.