The Reflection Terrace at Brookside Gardens

I am still water

I take on the color of the
hedge-pine greens the
geese-moss browns the
tortoise-rock grays the
azalea-breeze pinks the
bride-haze whites the
sniper-shot reds the
grief-sky blues the
sunny-cheese smiles the
gazebo-scream children

linger here and reflect

I am wind-roiled rippling
koi-breath bubbling
feather-splash dripping
skip-stone disrupting
rage-bird crying

in a silence so beautiful
you must stop for
just one more photo

Abigail Mills (she/they) is a writer from Alexandria, Virginia. Their work has appeared in Exposition Review, Santa Clara Review and Volition. She won the GMU Rinehart Fiction Award in 2026 and was a runner-up for the Virginia Downs EcoPoetry Award in 2025. She received her MFA in fiction from George Mason University in 2026.

Featured image “Sniper Memorial View Over Pond.” Photographed and uploaded by Harvey Grosser to be licensed via creative commons 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons.