"The Viking Ship"
by Bo Lockwood
A ship grounded in suspension, a pendulum pulled and:
swooping as a plummet wide, it dares
across the skim of grass to rush
into a push—
a smooth ascent slowing
as time stops.
And hanging,
breathless as momentum pulls
back into the fall: we ease into the backwards drop,
then slip with choking force—light,
the buoyant heart inflates, surges
to the surface of our blood,
a vicious half-circle rolling
from fear to fear. 2008