To the Woman with the Likely Smile

by Midnight Moon
Wild Poetry Forum
Third Place, March 2019
Judged by Ruth Bavetta


Chant to the Gods at midnight
stare out the bus window
at the Oregon pines,
giving way to palm trees at dawn

In the morning, Ensenada.
Reverse immigration,
the stars on your bracelet
reveal the belly button of the world
we all come from

Tell me, my star-dust,
tell me, my crazy nighttime dreamer
why you hold in your heart
all the reasons love can be found

Almost anywhere, from a park bench
in Hollywood to New Orleans
Boise-de-toi; tell me
when you hover by that flickering match

Far away and in some dark midnight
with a campfire your only friend
and Apacheland close enough to walk in a day
and you’re longing for the North, all the cities

Tell me, my sweetness,
why it’s only the moon and you
who know how to howl
in the night.


This free-wheeling poem is all over the place. Don’t look for a narrative, just absorb each moment and the bits of play and wisdom sprinkled throughout. Learn how to howl in the night. --Ruth Bavetta