An honest person knows truth
is laid like a plain board
sighted for length
and planed to make smooth,
uses a thumb not upwards
for approval or down for reckoning
but slipped along the wood
with eyes closed to catch
a sliver or spur until no mars remain,
that not with effort but with ease,
not with buck and split
but with acceptance of the original grain
groomed like a horse,
whispered to in patience.
About the Poet
Jeff Burt lives in Santa Cruz County, California, and works in mental health. He has contributed to Heartwood, Sheila-Na-Gig, Williwaw Journal, Red Wolf Journal, and Clerestory. He won the 2017 Cold Mountain Review Poetry Prize.
For the first time in nearly five years, Vita Brevis is closed for submission. Read the full story here.
Vita Brevis Press. 