SHRINES

Build them 

everywhere 

and with 

anything you can.

With nursing bras,

life vests,

even lighthouses.

From conversations

had from middle seats,

from fugitive oceans,

or for the sake

of the sudden arrival

of a hospice bed.

Make them from

the playa of life

to remember

what’s been lost

and the journeys 

dutifully taken.

Your green fuse

will blossom 

and make room

for more life 

when you do.

Be like the Asian moth

that causes the elephant

to cry and then feasts

upon its faithful tears,

like a babe
at its mother's breast.