What I Do Some Days, by Ronda Broatch

Dear Readers,

We were so excited and overwhelmed by the poems we received for our upcoming Mundane Joys anthology that we had to share a few on The Rail! This week brings us a sweet ode to simple afternoons, from poet and photographer Ronda Broatch. 

Mundane Joys celebrates the less-obvious triumphs of every day life. Each copy comes with a custom Derailleur Press tea blend and seed paper to grow a garden of your own. Visit our store to reserve yours today!

Happy reading!

- Derailleur Press

​What I Do Some Days

Afternoons, the weight of fog falls away. 
Robins fuss over a nest of open mouths,

cushioned in moss and lichen. As I walk,
warning trills drift over violets, spill 

notes simple, lilting. I won’t pare the vines 
snaking up our entryway, and anyway 

who would deny a home in kiwi leaves? 
We, their observers, measure sadness, 
​
one fig fewer than last year’s yield. We’re one 
part muscle, one part risk, our wrists tattooed  

in fragmented poetry. While I wait 
for the day to gather up her vapor, 

I stand beneath their busy chirping nest
holding my joy, my ravenous camera

Ronda Piszk Broatch, poet and photographer, author of Lake of Fallen Constellations, (MoonPath Press, 2015), Shedding Our Skins, (Finishing Line Press 2008), and Some Other Eden, (Finishing Line Press, 2005). rondabroatch.com