Napoleon planted these pines,
the soil is sandy but not a beach.
I want to lie down,
stare upwards like a child
who hasn’t had enough clouds.
The watery landscape keeps me upright.
On cherche les oiseaux,
mais on n’entend que les chants.
The sky deceives itself.
We talk (my French friends and I)
about how to inhabit the truth,
to sink our teeth into ice-cream
without fear of incrimination or shame.
We sit with gratitude on a fallen trunk,
taste different sorts of apples,
note the sour and sweet preponderances.
There is an ending amid a swamp,
tears escape in a storm.
Brambles, bare feet, endless water.
I am scared.
My friends, my parents become.
This vulnerability is unmapped.