Happy October, friends! I'm pleased to share my
monthly publication news.
First and most exciting things first: my poem, "Return," has been nominated by The Wild Word magazine for a 2020 Best of the Net. Many thanks to editor Kusi Okamura for this great honor!
Return
In the old neighborhood, I walk. I return
to the scenes of my beginnings. Heroes
get origin stories. Characters
get backstory. We get only
decaying houses, an empty pool
where we used to swim
in little-girl bathing suits.
Mine was pink with stars.
It’s drained now, my water,
while my stars overflow
with my adult body. I remember
how I once slipped and scraped
my knees on this playground.
My skin is a part of this place.
I am a part of this place. I am
a part of something. It is a part
of me. These connections reawaken
like old neural pathways lighting up again,
like old streetlamps with new bulbs
burning brighter. Nearby,
I rent rooms where I live. We’ll call it
a home. I fill the tub. Fluttering shadows
of birds and butterflies come in
through the blinds. In the water,
I feel their shadows through the glass
like a weight across my skin.
They are descendants of old birds
and butterflies that have touched me before
with their shadows. You can drink
from the same river twice. You can
go home again.
to the scenes of my beginnings. Heroes
get origin stories. Characters
get backstory. We get only
decaying houses, an empty pool
where we used to swim
in little-girl bathing suits.
Mine was pink with stars.
It’s drained now, my water,
while my stars overflow
with my adult body. I remember
how I once slipped and scraped
my knees on this playground.
My skin is a part of this place.
I am a part of this place. I am
a part of something. It is a part
of me. These connections reawaken
like old neural pathways lighting up again,
like old streetlamps with new bulbs
burning brighter. Nearby,
I rent rooms where I live. We’ll call it
a home. I fill the tub. Fluttering shadows
of birds and butterflies come in
through the blinds. In the water,
I feel their shadows through the glass
like a weight across my skin.
They are descendants of old birds
and butterflies that have touched me before
with their shadows. You can drink
from the same river twice. You can
go home again.
My poem, “The Real Meaning of Inferno,” was showcased on the POETiCA REViEW’s website. In the acceptance letter, the editors, Mark A. Murphy and Kieran M. Conway said the poem was “sublime” and “nearly moved them to tears.” The poem will be included in the Spring 2021 edition, as well as nominated for a 2021 Best of the Net.
Four poems, “Happy Trails,” “Forever Home,” “Minor Arcana,” and “Homemade Wine” appeared in an issue of Madness Muse Press. Many thanks to editor John Compton. Madness Muse has given my work a home before in their Mermaid Mirror anthology, and I am pleased to see that they are now releasing a regular journal.
The latest issue of The Racket included my poem, "Veladoras.” (It’s actually first in the magazine lineup!) Many thanks to editor Noah Sanders. Noah also accepted a poem called “Estate Sale,” which will appear in a later edition of The Racket. He said, “Both of [these poems] so succinctly capture a scene and an emotion and way of thinking that I love. This line in ‘Veladoras’ is particularly wonderful:
“St. Christopher got demoted,
but is accounted for nonetheless
alongside hominy and St. Jude.”
Thank you so much, Noah!
Once again, thank you to everyone for supporting
my work. I hope you have a safe and happy Halloween!