From “Dirt”
Red earth mountains rise
from the plains outside
of Oklahoma City
made from everyday life’s one-night stand.
Coming soon! Weathered Fragments, Weathered Souls.
Medusa, The Lost Daughter – Available now at Politics and Prose
https://www.politics-prose.com/book/9781624291272
From “Roots”
that strips the color you hide
when you are naked,
but not the color you prefer
when you are clothed.
Coming soon! Weathered Fragments, Weathered Souls.
Medusa, The Lost Daughter – Available now at Politics and Prose
https://www.politics-prose.com/book/9781624291272
From “Mud”
Her hand did not rise
to point at the pure cup,
but to the one soiled on the outside,
because she trusted not
what seemed to be clean and perfect,
Coming soon! Weathered Fragments, Weathered Souls.
Medusa, The Lost Daughter – Available now at Politics and Prose
https://www.politics-prose.com/book/9781624291272
From “Acid Rain”
…devoid of the yellow jackets that normally
pierced
my feet, as I danced a rhythm of thunder
beneath the sky lightning.
From “Burns”
Your skin chills,
snow seeps,
scrapes down your ankle,
searing skin that forgot
how the arctic burned
when it met warm flesh.
Excerpt from “Dust”
I don’t know where
these pieces fit,
or if they are even mine,
but I feel they are,
whether they are all with me,
clinging to my body
or still behind in that box
that remains unopened in the corner
marked kitchen goods.
Excerpt from “The Fragments You Carry”
The box remains to pick up
the rest of your things:
the permanent markers,
the bottle of Tylenol,
the loose change,
the card from a friend wishing you a safe journey,
the receipt from your favorite pho restaurant
and the cheap vodka you had last night.
My new chapbook, Weathered Fragments, Weathered Souls, will be out by the end of March. To help mark this occasion, I will be posting excerpts from the work through out the month of March.
Look out for it! Details on when it is available for purchase will be posted soon!
JL
Thank you, Alaska Women Speak, for accepting my poem “Play Along” for the Winter Social Media issue. As always, I appreciate AWS’ support. Check out this great Alaskan magazine at alaskawomenspeak.org.
A green stir stick, a coffee ring without a mug, was all that was left.
J.L. Smith 