I agree in the morning light, in flight
in sun glimmer over the riverbank
through the round of the round, I see what I want to see
the trees, the golden, the blue, the brow, the peach and only
you, your face—you gorgeous thing—that you are to me
and in the rip of the water, in the turn
of tide and debris; the moment moves—nothing is the same.
We nest and nestle
within woods, and the tree line
trims the sky of blue
trims the sky
into shapes unknown.
Love, love, love
to be vulnerable in time together is a gift
is the sun on our faces; is the sun
in your eyes;
you are the sun
of my days;
the day of the sun
I glimpse that swirl
at the river’s bank
its turn, and it carries me out,
it stirs inside me such whimsy—this
is the beauty of a day—
that life is fleeting. that nothing stays
that nothing stays the same forever.
–
Leah Umansky is the author of three collections of poetry, most recently, OF TYRANT (Word Works Books, 2024). She earned her MFA in Poetry at Sarah Lawrence College and has curated The COUPLET Reading Series in NYC since 2011. Her work has been featured in PBS, The New York Times, The Academy of American Poets’ Poem-A Day, POETRY, Plume, and elsewhere. This poem is from her new manuscript-in-progress, ORDINARY SPLENDOR, a book on wonder, joy, and love. This poem owes a debt to Josh Sapan and the River House residency. More at @leah.umansky on IG or @lady_bronte on X.