glaciology

you are the blue
floating jadeite
crystal castle
meltwater jettison
ice sheets on bedrock
scrape the earth clean
glacier tongues
lapped at the edges
by aqua

crystal lattice snow fields
form the silent valleys
warmer days bring
the meltings
up toward turquoise sky
only to return the next days
in white petals from on high

sea marigolds remember
when they slept
next to the thaw
lakes icy cold and blue
seen now only in visions
by unsuspecting travelers
on their way through the desert

(c) 1993