resistance

monkey sees men through glass, so glad not to belong
spider hangs in her summer web, already feels the fall

upstream fish prefers to drift when choosing not to spawn
crow departs the evergreen branch, ignores the murder behind

fox in silence takes her prey, will not be called a thief
hungry doe nibbles the hedge, no care for the gardener’s hand

woman demands he meet her eye, & and look into her soul
citizen votes though the process is flawed, will not become their fool

the line’s not straight, but wavers & bends to offer a flicker or two
field undulates like a calmer sea, the grass root dies of thirst

dark turns light as the heavens wheel by, returns when day is done
walk by the fence as it rises or falls, slip through the gap toward home

hold your breath then let it escape, grab reason as it flies away
persuade one person to respect your rights, stand firm against the rest

court those who float along the edge, hold the center when you can

 

Photo by luis rock from FreeImages

Written by 

Anne Leigh Parrish’s new poetry collection, The Banished and the Dead, appeared in March 2026 from Unsolicited Press. Her next collection of short stories, People Ruin Everything, will arrive in October 2026, also from Unsolicited Press. In 2027 she will present two more titles: When the River Runs Blue, poems; and The Quiet Violence of An Angry Heart, both from Unsolicited Press. She lives in Olympia, Washington. Explore her writing at www.anneleighparrish.com and her photography at www.laviniastudios.com

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