Photo by Gary Ellis

We are

by Tabor Skreslet

three billion base pairs long
unraveled unzipped replicated

ninety-nine percent every other human
ninety-six percent ape and a great deal
of shark and slime mold

our nuclei spin a recipe ancestral
and unique in three letter words

we walk the seismic earth
a shuddering membrane over a molten core

breathe in exhalations
of oaks and orchids breathe out
our fraction of atmosphere

we are carbon from a comet
vibrations from the stars

Tabor Skreslet

Tabor Skreslet is a scientist, teacher, and writer who grew up in Egypt and currently lives in Charlottesville, Virginia. Her poetry has appeared in Star*Line, Cordella, Oracle, and Intima.

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