A storm skirts along the coast,
her rain dousing the fires
that engulfed us all week.
I thank her outside,
lay my dry cactus
plant on the dead
trunk of an aspen
in the front yard
at 2am.
Hurricane Kay
just offshore,
dowse the fires,
calm our nerves,
a great reprieve;
Pisces full moon,
a new King ascends.
25 years since our last storm like this.
25 years since the world lost its Princess.
A shifting planet,
changing of the guard,
I stare at a mosquito
through the window screen
smelling my blood
but can’t get in.
Lisa is a past contributor for NerdWallet, and has published a poetry collection, The Driver, The Journey, The Fall. Lisa lives in the Los Angeles area. She is currently working on a YA novel and several children’s picture books, in addition to her research in family history and genealogy.
Lisa M. McDougald 