elbows and knees

on the sixth day, God folded paper cranes

He strung them up with the stars

admired how their wings caught the glimmer of the moon

they bumped against the night as inky rain dripped on their beaks

and their feathers whispered with the slightest breath of wind

but their hearts were paperweights

magnifying the constellations they perched between

pulling each little fledgling closer to the roaring of the sea

the sea nipped at the feet of the cranes

sharpening its claws against the rocky cliffs

their hearts settled like stones in their chests

surely they would grow too heavy and sink into the sea

melting to pulp in the waves

they waited for the wind and snapped their wings

the tethers broke and they fell toward the water

their bodies unfurled and they rode the night

ink blotting them in freckles and dimples

and when they landed on the shore

they found themselves human

with creases in their arms and legs

with paperweight hearts drumming in their chests