Emily as a Mango Hitting the Ground

By Darren C. Demaree

If this were an orchard

how lovely it would be

if Emily fell from a tree

as the mangos fall, roll

to the will of the root’s

gradient. In Ohio, though

we don’t grow any mangos

& such a fall bruises deeply

what we had first hoped

would be light pat

from the dirt. Origin

of my fruit, I am sorry,

I did my best to imagine

a way for you to be unscathed

or cradled in good context.

I failed to simply catch you.

Darren C. Demaree is living in Columbus, Ohio, with his wife and children. He is the author of As We Refer To Our Bodies (2013) and Not For Art Nor Prayer (2014), both collections from 8th House Publishing House. He is the recipient of two Pushcart Prize nominations and a Best of the Net nomination.