Sky Lanterns

Tonight we lit
sky lanterns
in the empty field
behind the house.
The candle fire
black as crows
hanging jagged
in the air
rattling trees.
I tried to describe
the spectra
of competing
and simultaneous
living energies,
though the line
I carved on bark
remained an apparition.
A bitter herb
flavored the water
in the bowl
earth offered
to our mouths.