Sometimes I sit in the backyard to forget & Suddenly I'm worried for a brother I've never met

Sometimes I sit in the backyard to forget

When things start getting too big
On a bench in an enclave of garden
I notice the bee rocking back and forth,
Balancing along the edge of a petal. I say,
Look, that's small & real. Let's think about
That, of dusty pollen-sacs, the deep stamen,
The beehive, the hexagons, the nectar.
Let's melt back into that ancient era of 
Young and happy knowledge -- seasons and chlorophyll and constellations. No, don't 
Reminisce. That is still 
What the world is. A balloon against wool 
Will still static tug your hair. I'm saying you didn't 
Lose everything. You know a bee
When you see it.

---

Suddenly I'm worried for a brother I've never met

I spare
The spider
On the wall. We've lost
Too much
Already.

I keep
Confirming
It's crawling
Along. Turn around
Every minute 
To check
& make sure.

If this one
Dies, that
Will end it. If I
Wake up one day
& it's gone,
I'll break.