When Will She Ever

O the mind, mind has mountains; cliffs of fall 
—Gerard Manley Hopkins

Life arranged through appointments,
nightfall, small tasks. Not ocean
mind. Not blazon
brute or valor. Brooding only
the pen cap
from which the writing instrument
comes singing. Where? Small
misplaced, regular
object. Not adazzle
or dappled. Whimsical not
of honeysuckle or wild
maple praline syrup. Ink not
delivered via the mouth
of a tulip, a poem, a board
game chute. Just a few
computations, spreadsheets, i’s dotted,
small misplaced
grievings. Oh the mind, the mind
has mountains she will never climb.

Melissa Studdard is the author of the poetry collections I Ate the Cosmos for Breakfast and Dear Selection Committee (forthcoming). Her writing has been featured by PBS, NPR, The New York Times, The Guardian, and more, and has won awards such as the Poetry Society of America’s Lucille Medwick Award.