Woman in the Leaves
by Alison Hicks
In summer she burned–
pink tips of crape myrtle
at the bottom of the garden
through morning mist.
The first cool nights
she sings the leaves loose,
that float onto her hair
lodge in corners of her mouth.
She lies,
hips settling into moss.
Leaves blow and gather
in the crevices of her body.
Woman in the leaves,
the drop-dead leaves.
51·çÁ÷¹ÙÍø the Author
Alison Hicks is the author of Kiss, a collection of poems, Falling Dreams, a chapbook, Love: A Story of Images, a novella, and the co-editor of an anthology, Prompted. She has twice received fellowships from the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts; her work has appeared in Eclipse, Gargoyle, Quiddity, Whiskey Island, Pearl, and other journals. She leads community-based writing workshops under the name Greater Philadelphia Wordshop Studio (www.philawordshop.com).