pollen sprinkled across
nectar glazed flowers

bees swarm the mouths of children
their milk teeth decaying
kissed with hard sugars

rock salt slung by the fistful
i endure a pilgrimage to the horizon

leaves jump from trees
asphalt bakes and fades
in the mid-afternoon sun

brown bats hang in plain sight
clouds transform into heroes

venus transverses the sky
planes crisscross the globe
with a sneeze, i mumble a false prayer

Originally from Georgia, Caseyrenée Lopez relocated with their family to Virginia in the summer of 2017. Caseyrenée works as a professor of English at John Tyler Community College. They are the author of two full-length collections of poetry, the new gods (Bottlecap Press, March 2018) and i was born dead (About Editions, October 2018), as well as a chapbook heretic bastard (Clare Songbirds Publishing House, forthcoming). In addition to teaching and writing, Caseyrenée also edits Crab Fat Magazine and publishes poetry and experimental work by queer and trans people at Damaged Goods Press. They tweet @caseyreneelopez.