Grafted In

by Desi Ana Sartini

Cut off

from all I once was,

sap bleeding

from my open wound,

the life drains out of me

drop

by drop—

the dry and dreary road

to the Gardener’s fire.

Drip.

Drip.

Drip.

But the

spill

stills

as the

drain down

wells up

in a flood

of the blood

of the wound

of another—

a tree cut off

to welcome me in,

the wounds

of our flesh

held flush

by the Gardener’s strong hand:

scion to rootstock,

death to life,

as we heal

into one.

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Desi Ana Sartini writes from SE Asia, where she has immersed herself in language. She studies Malay literature by day, Hebrew poetry by night, and cake-making on the weekends. Her work has appeared in Heart of Flesh Literary Journal, Foreshadow Magazine, The Habit podcast, and her writing blog at www.breathanddust.com