I read that bears chew their paws in hibernation,
the slow turn of their jaws keeps them warm from their gnawing.
I heard on the radio that women birth babies as shields,
one after another, becoming wells of milk and blood to avoid obligations.
In sand and water, I disguise, seek axolotls behind slimy seaweed.
Winter brings it all down, down, down.
I dissolve into gratitude.
I circulate it through my body like a prayer.
For my house is warm,
my child is growing longer by the day,
my neighbor brings me Tupperware of soup.
I am far from forgotten.
2024 Winning Submission for Penned: Poetry