Antitheses

by Ruth Chad


I see the tide   
drawn in by Selene’s moon

her celestial lantern
luring

waves wilding
whelk body     

reaching  
with muscular foot—

siphon brings oxygen
tentacles sense prey

in deep green    water
swelling and retreating

hope and despair

~

In the old fir tree
outside my window

pine needles
raked and unraked

by wind    scattering cones
carrying their scent

night by night
day by day

our losses inevitable

~

Seeds in a swirl
spiral

down

to moist earth    settling    
wisdom in the roots

and the seed shall be prosperous


* * * * *

Ruth Chad is a psychologist who lives and works in the Boston area. Her poems have
appeared in the Aurorean, Bagels with the Bards, Connection, Psychoanalytic Couple and
Family Institute of New England, Constellations, Ibbetson Street, Muddy River Poetry
Review, Lily Poetry Review, Amethyst Poetry Review, Writing in a Woman’s Voice, and
others. Her chapbook, The Sound of Angels, was published by Cervena Barva Press in
2017. Her forthcoming book, In the Absence of Birds, will be published by Cervena Barva
Press in 2024. Ruth was nominated for a Pushcart prize in 2021.