like daffodils and un-bloomed syllables
sponges grow in an ocean
of sea life
like a Thesaurus sees so many species
of swimming words looking for a coral
to rest upon
a poet to deep dive into the wreckage
of sunken flowers
and rusted hulks of words

a heartbeat once lived
on a sandbar of confidence

but writing moves
when the buoys aren't anchored strongly enough
and we feel submerged in criticism

of those daffodils and un-bloomed syllables
that are either land-locked
or too water-logged to make sense.

erin-cilberto