A Breaking Word

by Judy Halebsky

There’s that part

after Bashō writes

old still pond

of pressing a fingerprint into wet clay

where the word ya

holds a space in the air

a cloud changes shape in the sky

make it a dash, a murmur

a breath on the inhale

this old pond

so many have tried to open

a sigh, a hum, a—

frog jumps in

sound of water says Hass

plop says Watts

kerplunk says Ginsberg

From Tree Line, Kalamazoo, Michigan: New Issues Poetry & Prose, 2014.