Six Butterflies and a Moth on a Rose Branch, Thomas Stewart

I see you, moth,
fluttering about
in that electric blur
at night,


I watch your strength
with every beat of your wing,
I watch you steadying yourself
within that frame,


you’re an intruder, moth,
your heart beats
with your defiance, I see it
and know you have a weakness –


you are the moth
that walks over my grave,
that skates between
the hairs on my back


you are the moth
I’ve always wanted to ask questions
from the first time I saw you
hiding behind that portrait


I always wanted you to tell me a truth,
to show me what really goes on
in your head when you throw yourself
at my window – I always imagined


you had answers,
tell me something then, moth
tell me something that used
to make me excited, tell me,


moth, which way it is
to the living
for I have lost
my way.

© Thomas Stewart

Thomas Stewart is a Welsh writer currently based in Edinburgh. His debut poetry pamphlet ‘empire of dirt’ is published but Red Squirrel Press and can be found here:
https://www.redsquirrelpress.net/product-page/empire-of-dirt-thomas-stewart

His short stories, poetry and essays have been published at And Other Poems, Litro, The Stockholm Review, Ink, Sweat & Tears, Buzz Magazine, among others.

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