Category: 2020-21 Submissions

Snow in the Desert

The sky blurs, a mosaic of the small town weathered by the sun
and the dull grey of the clouds
The pink and gray mountains embrace the little town,
watching as the flurries fall before them
Snow slides down the dusty windows,
turning from a soft white to brown
A patchwork of dried grasses raise their heads to greet the snow,
like old friends that meet again after many years.
The flurries blow through the air,
pushed by the wind across the metal roofs of the faded homes
I reach out to catch them, but they
flit through my fingertips
and twist to the snowy ground

Today we are eating
Ramen that is flaming
Which isn’t a good idea
Because we have things from IKEA
Like calculators for our math homework
Right next to us, and if they burn, our teacher will go berserk!
And now next to us, there is a baby,
Who is lazy
Not drinking milk
Instead, playing with lemonade colored silk!
There is some more flame now
As bright as the sun and big as earth! I don’t know how
But now I see that time has flown
And we have missed our train home
Oh how I wish we had heard the phone alarm vibrate
Now our teacher will make us write on our slates!
But at least flowers don’t cost that much money,
We could bribe her with some that smell like honey!
But that interferes with my schedule you know
Because my mom said over the telephone, in a voice so low
That I would need to draw my blood
That made me angry, I threw mud
And had a tantrum with a tree
But, that isn’t normally me
I got to have ramen after blood drawing
This time not flaming
I then got to read a book
About love letters, computers, luck, and how goats look,
And how they make spaghetti, and website links
I read that book non stop till winter, till the rinks
Were open for me to skate
Then, Santa Clause came in the night
And gave me headphones to get my song lyrics right

There’s a mountain in the middle of the road
That needs to go
But we can’t put it into our truck load
It can’t go away just by the big bad wolf’s blow
Everywhere’s covered in snow
So we can’t just camp out here
We can’t play the “help” song on the banjo
Oh, I wish it would just disappear
Is it a mountain or is it a rock
I don’t know
But it’s definitely bigger than my sock!
Whether at night it glows
Or not,
Please help us! We’re stuck!

There’s a whale out in the water,
Hopefully not about to get slaughtered
Mist flying high
Leaping into the sky
And landing with a thud
Then leaps out again like a bud
Maybe he’s a ton, maybe he’s two
And everybody’s going ooooh
Marvel at this spectacular whale

Sometimes i think you are my hiraeth
My true home i can’t ever quite reach
I would say its a delusion but
I know what’s real

Whenever i’m near you its bittersweet
Like a book ending with a cliffhanger
Like one big ‘to be continued..’
Time feels ephemeral and like its running out
But you’re the only thing i want to chase

You remind me of lilacs and gardenias
The smell of wildflowers and hope
Old poetry and cool autumn evenings
You remind me of love

Somehow i think you’re celestial
Born from a celebration of the universe
An ethereal woman who thrives from sunsets
A force greater than Mother Nature
Someone who has captured my heart

The other day i had an epiphany
I know that you’re my only soulmate
But what breaks my heart
Is i know i’m not yours

There’s a letter I hope you’ll write me,
A letter that will never come.
A secret just for me.

I love your wit,
The way you always make me laugh
I love your empathy,
The way you weep, feeling their pain
I love your passion,
The way you care so deeply and wholly

Green doe eyes, loose silken curls
Long and Curved and Smooth
My very own fallen angel

Crane Flower,
You write.
Dove,
You envision.

I want to share
Your bed, Your armoire, Your life
I want to share
Everything, if it’s with you

I love you!
I love you?
I love you.

Those words you choose,
Friendly, Loving, Oblique
You’re an enigma.

Thrice I almost spoke
But I keep my feelings to myself
I keep you in my head
Idyllic, Ethereal, Fabrication
Your bracelet, a talisman
A painful reminder.
My dreams of illicit affairs
Yearning for an epiphany

If god is benevolent
Why is my mailbox empty?

My chest feels hollow
As hollow as my mailbox
As hollow as your ‘I love you’s
The things you say with reckless abandon
There’s no denouement for me.

Yet I still check the mail every day,
Rifling through spam mail,
And supermarket sales,
Hoping to see a small green envelope,
With a California return address.

Born under twin stars
To a ready made family ready for another
But not quite finished
Scared whimpers foreshadowing the pain I would have to endure
Running toward frigid water in mid November, shoes and corduroy overalls and all, held back by my mother
Colorado and a big chair, french braids and my idol
Barbecue and Christmas trees
The morning, I always knew I was less

Cars racing, Chicago
Trains rushing, Los Angeles
Abundance, Washington D.C.
Scared of needles, until I couldn’t be anymore
Bottles with too many pills
Once, then again and again
Fire kisses my face
And I can’t breathe
A hand pressed against my throat
Or maybe there isn’t and it isn’t and there’s nothing and it’s nothing and I’m nothing

Learning to protect myself, facetious
Learning to love,
Learning to let go.

Winter is like being wrapped up in a cold hug
I love the cold winters breeze
I watch the snow fall as I drink from my mug
It’s so cold outside I get numb to my knees

Winter makes me want to cozy up by the fire
Oh how I love the joy of making gingerbread cookies
It brings me joy when people sing their holiday choir
I always look forward to the yummy goodies

Winter is a magical season
I love how each snowflake is different and unique
You’ve got to love Winter I’ve given you so many reasons
The snow is oh so white and sleek

Winter is fun don’t you agree
Go take a look and you’ll see

Empty hearts and empty dreams
Empty minds just as it seems
Empty faces soaked in tears
Empty screams ring in my ears
Empty eyes are set in stone
In this empty world, we walk alone