“Bergelmir” by James Joseph Brown

When the rain first falls from the bruised sky
Bergelmir knows that it’s blood, knows Ymir
has been slain by Odin and his brothers, now
he’s the only survivor, the only unbroken thread
left behind on the broken loom, boys in a group
are no longer boys, soon they transform into
hungry beasts, many-headed and starved since
the first day clouds appeared in the violent sky
the sight of blood thrills the pack, signals them
to sharpen their weapons, bare their teeth, gust
into clouds that billow and rage, swarms of boy ants
fill the mountain paths with dirt-caked feet, when the
giants stand on this moon and spread their toes
trees fall, groves flatten into meadows, when boys
gather close they always end up kissing until their
ancient hearts sputter into wings, Bergelmir roars
into the mountains, growls like a bear, lone soul
afloat on the summit while the world floods red
now inhale, replace the clouds with your voice
bellow and breathe, echo and fade, no one is left
to witness the sky as you split into shards, divide
yourself into multiples, leave pieces of yourself
in every new giant you create from what’s left

James Joseph Brown is an American writer, editor, and educator based in Dubai. He earned his MFA from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. His poetry has appeared in Tiger Leaping Review, The Raven Review, Resurrection Magazine, Red Rock Review, and many other publications. Visit him at www.jamesjosephbrown.com.