“The French, I believe, have agreed on the term ‘aviation’ 

in case they ever succeed in flying.”—Century Magazine, 

October 1891

Let’s agree on a word for _______ in case

we ever succeed in ________ing. To the girls

who lie down in fields, their bicycles

on their sides, too, like horses

asleep in the sun, know this: even though

________ is not a science yet, it will be.

When you button your shirt in the morning,

fingers fumbling to fasten the circles,

to thread them through, know that we invented

the word for this science from bud, as if

a row of tender orchids will soon bloom

down your chest, a new branch of botany.

Science of radio, science of sleep,

science of kindness, science of wheel.

One day we will study ________ like we study

flight or photography. Let’s agree

on this: everything exists on a spectrum,

word derived from specter, science of startle,

science of the remarkable. Two girls

in a field test the science of buttons.

Their shirts will soon break into yellow blooms.