And I just want the whole world to know
Or just someone to know
I want to tell someone 
What you told me
About how you yesterday
Saw me beaming in some way
Some new way
Some way you’ve never seen me shine 

And maybe it’s the fullness of the sun
Or the moon’s humble nature
Or how the two chase one another
For who knows how long
Before they find their footing 
Here on the ordinary Earth

Is it the land or the sun
That makes the moon want to stay 
It’s lions on bikes and elephants with sideways eyes
In my mind at least 

The polite sneeze of a hornbill
Interrupts my river of thoughts
About imaginary things only
Nevermind
Plenty time
I can manage 

It’s only when the moon is luminous 
In full expression
That the sun cannot bear to share its sky
A handsome coward he is
His attendance certain when his shape 
Is the only finished circle 

Show up when you are incomplete
Try when you are unsure
Fall to no fear
Let the moon see your threads 
Be courage 

A specimen to behold
Shameful to not be held
Take what she gives
Water when it rains
A dry pan on the tenth day of October

Admit you have not the slightest clue
What lies ahead
The moon said
Tell me about a time you were wrong
The sun never responded
And still has yet to lay vulnerable 

The sun has stolen from the moon
An opportunity to reflect back
Something even more beautiful than the sun itself
The moon can only stay for so long
Its time measured and precise 
Ever-flowing 

Avoiding the seriousness is the painful part
The resistance creates the discomfort
Succumb to gravity 
A pull undeniable 

Today is my birthday 
I am the daughter of a Zimbabwean 
I am white and that confuses my fellow Americans
I pronounce my T’s with intention 
All of them, too 
And that confuses my fellow Americans

An outsider too good at being on the margins
An observer happy to soften
Like butter on toast