Come Home

Today I will make a beast with great antlers 
                    I will set him loose in our driveway in front of bleak headlights 
and his sinew and fear will be illuminated against the bruising dusk 
and his hide will reflect light onto the side door we never use

                                                                    I will place ivy in his antlers 
invite him into our yard and all the trees will cover their roots 
                                                      and the neighbors’ children will point 
                              and he will back against the wall that sprouts red leaves 
but we will still see him because he is not a leaf and does not fall 
                                                  although perhaps when we close our eyes 
we will wonder if he is still there
                
                                                             In winter 
when the ground thickens I will give him new hooves 
                                   and when the ground melts I will teach him to swim 
                                 and he will neck his way across the river in our home 
and take a seat at the table 
              where we fold and 
              lean and where 
                           nothing is ever full









Ellene Glenn Moore's work has appeared or is forthcoming in Barn Owl Review, Architrave Press, and other print and online journals. She lives in Miami, Florida, where she is an MFA candidate and Knight Fellow at Florida International University.