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# Gardiner, July 23rd
- URL: https://www.fsm.ink/gardiner-july-23rd/
- Published: 2025-02-15T18:16:56.000Z
- Updated: 2026-06-03T18:01:15.000Z
- Author: Staff
- Tags: Poetry, #Import 2026-08-03 09:59

by A.M. Albaugh

Mist crowns the mountains, and ravens glide toward  
steaming geysers with beaks hanging open. A bison  
stands in the middle of a bridge. Ants cover  
the parched earth and my hands  
as I deadhead columbines. The onions  
need watering. Smoke from fire  
replaces the mist. A coyote  
chases two pronghorns, and the Sapphire Pool  
erupts. A grizzly and three cubs retreat  
into the shade of lodgepole pines. Geese fly  
past Phantom Lake. Find water  
or shade, crawl if necessary until  
the pink sun makes its way west and elk  
come down from the mountain to rest  
in the valley. The parts society created  
crumble and turn to dust. Screeching  
crickets amplify the hollowness  
in stomachs. Fierce stars  
are wolves’ teeth sinking  
into my retinas.

> A.M. Albaugh is a writer and photographer. She likes to travel and her work has been published in *The Festival Review*, *Sad Girl Diaries*, *PhotoVogue*, and more.