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A creation by Beau Frail

Beau Frail

"I wrote this poem and drew this watercolor for my Uncle Len. He recently lost some of his closest friends and I was moved to share something reflecting on loss, grief, and hope. He’s an amazing gardener among many other things—so the rain and flower metaphors grew from there. The poem explores the journey of grief—how we carry it with us over time—sometimes as a soft drizzle and other times as a downpour drowning out all else. It’s important for us to give space for our grief to process while also glancing toward the light on the horizon. The blooms to come. I watercolored three wood of life flowers, which is the national flower of Jamaica, to honor my Uncle Len’s heritage. While this poem is heavy, I hope the art adds some lightness and perhaps inspires you to think of your favorite spring blooms. What does your favorite flower smell like? A mild sweetness or a bold fragrance? How do their petals feel? Papery thin or smooth and succulent?

I’m a poet, artist, and architect living in Savannah, GA. I call myself gay poet beau since I spent the first 22 years of my life dimming my light—afraid of who I was and who I might become. Now I unapologetically claim and celebrate this queerer part of me. Creating poetry and art helped me explore my feelings and eventually find the courage to embrace my truth. That’s why I’m proud to call myself gay poet beau. And wouldn’t the world be so much brighter if we all shone out our truths within?

stylistic note: I only capitalize the first-person “I” in my poetry to intentionally claim space for my queer identity, since I don’t want to minimize myself anymore or conform to society’s expectations of who I’m limited to be

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