“Tremor,” a Poem by Fatema Abdoolcarim

I hear him before I see him.
An underbelly of bright white light
a ghost in the shadows.

With pitch black eyes
he sees into pitch blackness.
Swooping softly in figure ∞’s—

immensity held open in his wings
held almost entirely still
except for a slight tremble

unseen, but felt by my fingertips.
It quivers up my arms into my chest
makes my heart beat

and he feels it too—
the back of my hand, bony like bird feet
trembling, the barn owl floats close

if I reach out I could touch the tip of his wing.

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Tremble by Fatema Abdoolcarim is available from Monitor Books.