Poetry

A Theory of Gravity

by Josh Pearce

Under the apple tree
you say,
I don't understand
this whole theory of gravity thing.

What attracts two
bodies together?

You are collecting apples
in a basket.
The thin spacetime fabric
of your T-shirt is warped
by gravitational pull

and, as you bend over
to pick up fallen fruit
in the August shade, over
and over,

a drop of sweat falls
from the hollow of your throat
like a good idea,
into the deep trough
between these two white stars,

a melting comet
vaporizing
in the heat of your body.

It is pulled into an orbit
by the undercurve
of your left side,
deflected from its path
to the event horizon
of your waistband.

And I understand.

If you could see
what I see.

Copyright © 2017 by Josh Pearce

poet_JoshPearce_75x105Featured Poet of the Month Josh Pearce
Josh Pearce is a fiction writer and poet from the San Francisco Bay Area. He earned a B.A. degree in English with an emphasis on Creative Writing from SFSU and currently works as an editorial assistant at Locus magazine. His writing has been accepted into several magazines including Star*Line, Andromeda Spaceways, and Eye to the Telescope. He currently lives in the East Bay with his wife. Find him on Twitter: @fictionaljosh or at fictionaljosh.com. One time, Ken Jennings signed his chest.

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