Out of Stone
by Julia Kolchinsky Dasbach
Treblinka Memorial Park
the smell of eggs and herring. so much
stone, I considered bringing a small one back
to my great-grandmother’s grave. but she’d had
enough already. enough of Eastern Europe.
enough of weight. of stone. it must all be
stone made of stones where she is. boulders really.
some embossed. some charred. some loved
with rocks or dry flowers or tea
candles. some just with wax
and others with flags. some,
so far, who would endure
how long it takes
to get to loving them?
and who loves
a stone?
the loved
turn into or out of it.
stone to black
moth. petrified. the cleft
of a river. stone out of
stone out of uneven cobble.
cobble to asphalt and uneven
love and unleavened
bread. taste of stone. linger
tasteless. evergreens
needle this gray ground an acid
red. acrid stones
that smell only
if you listen close.