Poetry Round Up

You may have wondered at the staggering absence of short stories here. Don’t worry, I’ve been writing. Quite a lot, actually. But I’ve been holding most of my stories back from Substack for the dice-roll of publication in literary magazines.

Poetry, however, is still a fast and loose game for me over on Instagram. I’m even trying something different. Rather than just writing my poems, I’m reading them as reels. I’m not sure I’ll do that for all poems, but these last two have been fun experiments.

Stay tuned for short stories. They’re coming into the world, one way or another. For now, I hope you enjoy these latest poems.

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The Container

When I really think about it,
A day is a container.
I decide what it holds.
It is ready for my joy,
But also my rumination.
There’s space for adventure
Or quiet reading nooks.
It’ll hold productivity
The same way as wasted hours.
When I think about it like that,
A day no longer happens.
A day, this day, today,
Is mine to make.

Hear me read this poem.

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My True Colors

I remember when I was pastel.
Just a tinge of pigment
in a sea of all the colors that white holds.
I spent so much time
concerned with the characteristics
of other hues.
But life bruised me
And my lavender darkened to maroon
before settling into a nearly black aubergine.
I began to appreciate the richness
of a solitary color
becoming more and more of itself
until it was so deep
that it no longer a color at all.
It was its very own shade.

Hear me read this poem.

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