25 Sep Back 40: Mountain [ moun-tn ]

noun

sleeping giant:
We pass over the mountain’s back, ice licking the treads of
our tires, our voices hushed.

comforting companion:
The mountain yawns but doesn’t shift. Its blankets of tired timber, salted greens, and browned sage wrap over its sleeping shoulders. We curl into the nook of its knees, waiting out the earth’s incessant turning.

barren abundance:
Lost in the mountain’s sharp edges are vast unpeopled bodies.

a claimed home:
It waits, gentlemanly in its vibrant robes and powdered white toupée. We glimpse it from afar, catching our breath at the sight that feels like a homecoming.

adjective

not from the mountains, but having had the mountains ingrained into one’s genetic code:
Though I was born among the placid plains, the exposed corn, and lolling hills, this dramatic topography has etched its memory into my bones. My spine splinters into crags and canyons.

Aubrey Brady studied music at Covenant College and is working on her master of fine arts in creative writing with an emphasis in poetry at Lindenwood University. Her work has appeared or is upcoming in ONE ART, Solum Press, Book of Matches, Ekstasis, Moria, and Barbar. She lives in Montana with her husband, Matthew, and their two children.