R. G. Rader
Last Breath


For Jane
(1931-2013)

In search of my mother's garden, I found my own.
— Alice Walker

a
tree
withers
nourishes
beneath it, new ground:
the coming and going we share


her
gasp—
deepened
breathing forced,
paced by memories
once faded, now sharpened again


her
chest
rises
and falls still
the sun's distant warmth
barely dries my tears this fall day