A KISS BLOWN IN THE MIRROR by Ann Hite

You were always in the mirror.

Standing, waiting, watching.

You with a goofy grin,

Looking on as if I mattered.

The heart of our life plays out in unison with the seasons,

Moving like a river over rocks, that try to stop us.

But we move too fast, too smooth, too like the wind,

The hawks holding still in the air. High.

We finish each other’s thoughts.

Magic. Love. Kindness.

Knowledge of each other’s movements

Before we make them.

Knowing our words, thoughts, pains.

We are the kisses in the mirror,

The life in reflection,

In a ripple of glass.

Home is the kisses blown into the air,

The life carved out of raw edges,

Hard times, repaired in the future.

Life in meadows of wildflowers.

A Kiss when we made vows years before.

We hold that kiss in the mirror

Close to our hearts

Close to our skin.

If we had feathers we would move with the

Wind in and out of the treetops.

Wingtips touching,

Flapping in the chill of the air.

If we held hands as young teenagers

Would we be here now? In this world we built

From kisses in the mirror, of music, of pain,

Of kindness, love, a fabric tightly woven.

Years are water flowing in a river, rushing to the ocean.

People leave, die, cry, but still we move in our dance,

Up into the crisp air,

Close to the mountaintop, close to heaven.

Kisses are blown in the mirror where we look at each other’s

Reflections, silent,

Braided in this long breath of

Air taken in unison.

In September of 2011 Gallery, an imprint of Simon & Schuster, published Ann Hite’s first novel, Ghost on Black Mountain. In 2012 this novel was shortlisted for the Townsend Prize, Georgia’s oldest literary award. In the same year, Ghost on Black Mountain won Hite Georgia Author of the Year. She went on to publish four more novels, a novella, memoir, and most recently Haints On Black Mountain: A Haunted Short Story Collection from Mercer University Press. In December 2022, Haints On Black Mountain was one of ten finalist for the Townsend Prize. The collection was a Bronze Winner in Foreword Indie Award 2023 and Georgia Author of the Year Second Place Winner for Short Stories 2023. Ann received a scholarship to the Appalachian Writers Workshop Hindman Settlement in the summer of 2020 and was invited back in 2021. Her passion for history influences all her work.