Tread With Me
I stumble
on a snake
and smile.
Flicks of rocks
shoot through grass,
dart over sand
like breath:
a lean form
between the patterns
in the pebbles.
To be startled,
then aware.
To surrender my
sphere because
the snake’s home
is in the apple tree.
But lord I know
the same damned
life pumps in him
as does in me.
Anna Autilio graduated with a B.S. in Animal Science and a minor in Creative Writing from Cornell University in May 2014, where she won two awards for poetry and fiction. She has work in Rainy Day and The Fine Line. She has also published her graduate research on avian scavengers, including a coloring book, “Caracaras of the World.” She currently lives in Boise, ID, where she’s pursuing a Master’s degree in Raptor Biology, and volunteers at the World Center for Birds of Prey.
Tags: Anna Autilio