crime and science (title from Edge of the Jungle by William Beebe)

by Divya M. Persaud

take / allometry of this body
of trees: the sink of this soil
and which oceans I touch;

cutlass to palm raises sixteen wings.
biomass destruction. rubber bullet. knife /
mango. Atlantic collects my deltaic sigh,

salt creep through mangrove to backdam.
interior out / tree rings with no centers,
cane-cut banana shoot me /

me /
arrow marks heads of plantain giants /
measure me / me /

me /