Anatomy in Bloom cotton crafted in stainless steel that

crafted in stainless steel that gleams with the silvered light of the moonlit sea

pages salt-stained and illegible — save for the sketches: spirals of coral

then settles back into the line

Sailors once spoke of such charms as guides for those who sought the ocean’s secret paths

the central stone knocking once against the edge of the saucer

Anatomy in Bloom cotton crafted in stainless steel thatThe path is dry today, pale dust lifting around Elsbeths shoes as she crosses the cemetery with a few stems pinched between her fingers daisies, a sprig of blue, whatever was still standing along the path. She pauses at the gate only to push it wider with her hip, then continues on, unhurried. She kneels where the grass has grown uneven and reaches for the chain at her throat, lifting the small copper leg free from where it rests against her chest.