She Loved Anything With Wings

1. Vermilion Flycatchers

They drank Long Island Iced Teas lounging by their flaming fireplace. She watched the rain pouring down outside the window. A flock of birds swooped across the blooming apple trees, taking cover beneath their porch. The birds chattered and blushed.

2. Winter Rituals

Alone in the valley, they masked themselves in studded velvet and nocturnal bird wings. Beneath the glassy moon, he helped her rip her long cotton gown into a fringe of delicate threads. The bare winter bones of pomegranate trees curved around them like a harps.

3. A Model in Williamsburg

She packed her vintage hats in tissue to send to a model friend in Williamsburg. Some hats nested in veiled egret feathers & others swirled with velvet & breathing mink. Her friend modeled for her vintage blog, accessorizing lingerie, black silk noir & peach stockings with her hats. She feared her hats would lose their way on the subways & stilettos.

4. Jeanne d’ Arc

Voices and visions flamed through her. She cut her hair, dressed in men’s clothing, and ended the Hundred Years War. Tried in chains as a witch, she burned at the stake. Her fingertips lit-up like candles.

5. Beautiful in Malibu

The starfish clung to the rocks, and she wanted to hold them. At the Getty Villa, they viewed Greek and Roman marble and glass antiquities and walked in the cool of the fruit and herb garden. Early evening, he pulled off Pacific Coast Highway. The sun melted into hot hues in the sky and ocean, and every hue of cool blue reflected on the water. But the most beautiful thing she saw that day was two girls talking with angelic hands in the garden.