Katrina Kaye

the meadow has gone
like all things eventually do

childhood playground
prey to constant foot falls
and shifts of flood to drought

the numb of night wanes
long stalks of mild green
into wilt and waste

the scorch of day evaporates
morning dew from slick leaves of grass

it always seemed safe here

somehow perpetual

but this world is volatile

it is always taking;

turning what is
into what was

heaven dries in the heat
and heaves into wasteland

magic is dissected into
practical parts and disappears

children lose their fairy wings
and become merely human

“Meadow” is previously published in Saturday’s Sirens (2021).