Harlan Mackey

When she used to dream
of flying
she floated confidently above
quilts of lawns,
infernos,
chimney flags anchoring
glass houses.

Now when she dreams
of flying,
radio wires,
aerial veins,
an occasional brave tree
in flame,
they snag her
beautiful laundered frame
asunder.

Some even say
she barely clears the sky.

Harlan Mackey has written about and lived in Appalachia, the Outback, and the imagination. Long ago people could just write about only one, and they weren’t supposed to live there. Now it seems one has to write about and live in all three. He has come a longer way in this regard than anyone thought possible. He lives and teaches in the Bay Area.