Ivy, for scaling.
Iceplant, for creeping.
Green shields, green spears.
A family lies sleeping.

New runners, fresh shoots.
Ivy, for screening.
Downslope a man kneels.
Iceplant, for hedging.

Blast-furnace summers.
Tinderbox evenings.
Ivy, for braiding.
Iceplant, for weaving.

Hazy sun, sooty sky.
What’s the radio saying?
Ivey and iceplant.
A woman keeps pacing.

A house on a hillside.
Dry annuals flaring.
Ivy, for grasping.
Iceplant, for reaching.