A gust—

golden grass and golden hair flail,

caught in the sudden wind,

and the woman’s silken red skirt,

tail feathers of a cardinal,

swirls 

The man loops an arm around her waist,

his raven sleeve against her 

cardinal hue

she laughs a songbird chirp

as the orange clouds rush across the sky,

pushed by the air

The man opens up his black umbrella

above her

and fits it to her hand

open wing

catching the untameable breath of the sky

beneath dark feathers

The gale is stronger than she expects,

rushing up through the grass,

tangling her curly hair,

spreading out her soft, silky scarlet wings

against the raven behind her

“Feel that?”

The man asks the woman,

the cardinal 

twittering—singing—in delight under his wing

“This is how a breeze feels to birds.

This is how it feels to fly.”