I know this is a church 
or a short film  
about the threshold  

of a steady storm taking 
place outside a church. 
I know Emily is in  

the fountain  
in the courtyard, tensed 
with joy, kicking  

at the goldenrod 
that replaced my longing 
when she chose to be  

with the water  
because all I knew 
was thirst. Everything  

is singing when 
she is wet. Everything 
is a miracle when I tell  

you there is no church 
& no poetry, there is only 
her body continuing 

to rupture 
the narrative of there 
might be other moons,  

but the only reason 
my face glistens 
is she makes the tide. 

Darren C. Demaree is the author of eighteen poetry collections, most recently “the luxury”, (Glass Lyre, January 2023).  He is the recipient of an Ohio Arts Council Individual Excellence Award, the Louise Bogan Award from Trio House Press, and the Nancy Dew Taylor Award from Emrys Journal.  He is the Editor-in-Chief of the Best of the Net Anthology and the Managing Editor of Ovenbird Poetry.  He is currently living in Columbus, Ohio with his wife and children.