the elegance
of a bare-bones tree
standing lithe against the sky
there is beauty
in the bones
of a tree silhouette
there is beauty
in the heart
that is bereft
the sinewy
fragility
of life without skin
having shed
the outer layer
of protection
leaving the core
fully, undeniably
exposed
yet
there’s beauty in
transparency
nowhere to run
nowhere to hide
nowhere to go
both
have known
life before
both
will know life
again