Sarah A. Etlinger
No Ceremony
But in the end it is I who finds her
low in the long grass, anointed with death:
lithe doe legs unlatched from motion
white as winter, instinct stilled
to November’s slow hum.
The sap in the trees sleeps her sleep.
No ceremony but turkey vulture—
talon and beak, tug of gristle, pecked tendon.
Let it be everything and absolute.
Sarah A. Etlinger is an English professor who lives in Milwaukee, WI, with her family. Her work nominated for the Pushcart and the Best of the Net, and she's the author of 4 books; most recently, A Bright Wound (Cornerstone Press, 2024). Recent work appears in JMWW, Heavy Feather Review, Pithead Chapel, and many others. When she's not reading, writing, or teaching, find her birdwatching, cooking, baking, or spending time near Lake Michigan.