Hold up the sky
I made coffee in the mornings.
Slept in late. Watched the sky
Turn pink of an evening.
I thought maybe
The sky is a flamingo
Standing on one leg. Holding it
From falling in. You told me
I whiled away too many hours
In my head. On a good day
I would get out for a run.
You waited for me
Under blankets. Impatiently
We argued small matters
But really of anger with the world
That had gashed us irreparably.
You revered my wounds in bed
When we undressed each other
And resented me
That I could not close them.
I loved you for trying.
At night, feigning sleep
I watched you
Balance on one leg
And hold up the sky.
Sam Gluck is a poet and singer songwriter from Swansea, UK. His poetry draws on the splendour of nature, and grief and renewal. His debut album I May Well Have Already Lost was released in 2023. He was featured in the Poetry Wales 60th anniversary issue as one of sixty Welsh “poets to watch”. His work has also appeared in The Seventh Quarry Press.