prayer and prey

the dark park rankles with hoariness 
ancient pockets of omnipotence watch you
clamber through the gates of trees
with fresh regret & equal determination

the cruising spot tinkles with light
as you approach the weathered forms gathered
constellations of eyes glow before you
‘be not afraid,’ rumbles forth as you get on your knees

the blasphemy of your body becomes sacred
as tongues and eyelight lap you lithe
feathers glide down your spine
provoked by the ceremony of craving

at the end one cups your cheek in communion
the eyes bore into you like nails hammered
& they leave you dazed in their rapture
rich brine at your lip and soil on your jeans

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harold coutts is a poet and writer based in Te Whanganui-a-Tara. You can find their work in Starling, Ōrongohau | Best New Zealand Poems, Poetry Aotearoa Yearbook, and in Out Here, edited by Chris Tse and Emma Barnes. Their chapbook longing was published alongside chapbooks by Arielle Walker and Sarah Lawrence in AUP New Poets 9.