I was walking across the parking lot
morning smell of lilacs
when a girl fell like a bird
shot.
Blood splayed from her lip,
her body shimmered like a rain stick.
I held her hand.
The Talmud considers the soul
and when it becomes attached
to the body. The Hmong say
the spirit leaves & we fall down.
I sat on the pavement, her hand in mine,
and waited for her spirit to return —
in the distance two chickadees responded
to one another’s calls.
Joy Gaines-Friedler is the author of two full-length collections of poetry, “Dutiful Heart,” and “Like Vapor.” She teaches poetry and creative writing in the Detroit area; her students include young adults “at risk” and parents of murdered children.
