Camellias

by Beau Boudreaux

Two shrubs planted

at the entrance to my house

in early bloom, mid-December,

a cerise, lit hue, buds heavy

like walnuts kindled begging to crack,

and it’s tropical down here

does no one notice this cycling by

pushing a stroller, these flowers

clip one, and float it in a crystal bowl

eyeballs covered with green lids.

Beau Boudreaux teaches English in Continuing Studies at Tulane University in New Orleans. His first book-length collection Running Red, Running Redder was published in the spring of 2012 by Cherry Grove Collections. He has published his poetry in journals including Antioch Review and Louisiana Literature and in The Southern Poetry Anthology. His poem “Seersuckered” was published in Deep South in April 2012.