P. Scott Cunningham     Miami     (Anjanette Delgado)
Qasida of the Pinecone

after Lorca

The pinecone
wasn’t asking for the dawn:
almost undead on its limb,
it asked to be alone.

The pinecone
wasn’t asking for science or shadow:
the mind’s and body’s limits,
it asked to be alone.

The pinecone
wasn’t asking for the pinecone:
the stillness of the sky was in it;
it asked to be alone. 

Originally published in Ya Te Veo (University of Arkansas, 2018)