Praise the lake today, the path
you walked around it. How
even in your stumbling, you
left the bed & basement. Small
steps, every grateful breath.
You slept through the night.
Had dreams full of plants.
Not everything is dead. Today
you didn’t even say it aloud,
with the word wish so close.
Today you wished it less. Praise
the absence of certain things.
Gone are the sour pills.
You deleted his number. Forget
the bottles in the trees, tires
on gravel, the bracelet
that wouldn’t come off.
Don’t think about valleys.
You’re headed up. Today,
praise the slow climb
to the kitchen, palms golden
with curry. Praise the space the spice
takes up. Your sudden want
for a second helping,
your spoon looping the pot.