It’s been a hell of a month, and it’s almost over. I’m thankful for this. Things are starting to slow down and the sun is out more and my fingers are crossed that this is a good omen. Today, I gave myself a much-needed day off and wrote poetry in a tea shop that I’d been meaning to visit for years but just never got around to it until now. I also visited the Center for PostNatural History, a small, free gallery dedicated to “[t]he study of the origins, habitats, and evolution of organisms that have been intentionally and heritably altered by humans” and “[t]he record of the influence of human culture on evolution.” Its contents are a mix of the delightfully strange and terribly disturbing, and gave me a lot of writing inspiration.

Here’s what I’ve written during the past 6 days of National Poetry Writing Month. Like my last entry, I feel like the quality widely varies, but there are bits and pieces in almost all of these poems that I’ll probably eventually cannibalize into other poems. I’m also proud that I was able to include an ode to Gundam in this batch. 🙂

April 17, 2018

“My hunger”

caloric asteroid belt/i felt
my hip bones under gravity
flat and narrow/hunger burrows
all the accomplishments in the world
all the knowledge this broken brain can hold
i’d burn them like sugars/textured dysmorphic
ideal of perfect

April 18, 2018

“Letter to my favorite fictional character”

BRIGHT NOA

forgive yourself, but not your son.
forgive your proxy sons, but
not the wars that turned them into
what they became.
you look in the mirror and
try to slap some sense into yourself:
your reflection reveals a
19-year old fresh-faced ensign
with old fears and
too many new regrets.

April 19, 2018

“Self-portrait as rain”

overcast irises and
mold-speckled throat/i am
a wisping thing/coughs run and
branches shake/i sip
hot elderberry tea
insides cozy/outside so cold
fragile balance/battling extremities

April 20, 2018

“A body of water”

chinoike jigoku

beppu’s blood pond hell,

a steaming crimson potion

that can cure all ills.

April 21, 2018

“Little hurts”

short words with intent
long lines of discontent

when you walk away while
i show you something I made

paternal disappointment
in a lover’ eyes

i am a woman, not a child
i am a human, with the right to feel

April 22, 2018

“Little joys”

sage tea/lavender incense
baggy denim jackets on
cold but sunny days

i am sitting by the window
of this tea shop
drinking a brew dubbed
“goddess”

i am here to create small pieces of art
i am a small piece of art
sipping deities during a spring morning