"Triangles" by Anna Martin
"A One-Minute History of Letting Go" by Amanda Hope
Imagine, though,
that the air feels the way air must have felt before
the concept of temperature,
and incantations
fall against each other, one after another,
fluidly, like milk,
and you pocket just a few
for yourself:
talentedworthyforgivenbeloved
and you tuck them away next to your skin
where they feel like the touch
of a friend you had a crush on once —
who knowswhy, probably
something to dowith your mother issues, or
your inability to improvise on the things you’re supposed to,
like jazz,remembering
nowrunning through the rat
maze of thinking aboutnot
thinking aboutit, and your fingers
notmoving at all, and
your every silence since that day has been the same
six words never spoken --
the way your friend’s hand would graze
your arm when you were sullen & wounded,
and it felt
the way a dry creased paper
must feel
when a droplet of water is
let
fall
on its folds and it opens,
meticulous as a flower.
that the air feels the way air must have felt before
the concept of temperature,
and incantations
fall against each other, one after another,
fluidly, like milk,
and you pocket just a few
for yourself:
talentedworthyforgivenbeloved
and you tuck them away next to your skin
where they feel like the touch
of a friend you had a crush on once —
who knowswhy, probably
something to dowith your mother issues, or
your inability to improvise on the things you’re supposed to,
like jazz,remembering
nowrunning through the rat
maze of thinking aboutnot
thinking aboutit, and your fingers
notmoving at all, and
your every silence since that day has been the same
six words never spoken --
the way your friend’s hand would graze
your arm when you were sullen & wounded,
and it felt
the way a dry creased paper
must feel
when a droplet of water is
let
fall
on its folds and it opens,
meticulous as a flower.
Amanda Hope is a poet and librarian from Massachusetts. Her work has appeared or is forthcoming in publications including Compose, Barrow Street, Construction, and Glass: A Journal of Poetry, and has been nominated for Best of the Net. You can find her on Twitter @AmandaHopePoet.
Anna Martin is a digital/traditional artist, writer and photographer based out of Saint Augustine, Florida. She is an avid explorer and much of her artwork is inspired by her travels and life experiences, and she strives to capture emotions and inspire others with her work. Her work has been previously exhibited in various galleries and museums, such as the Rosenberg Gallery and the Baltimore Museum of Art, and has also been published in various art magazines such as Grub Street and Plenilune Magazine. Anna is a freelance artist, and is always looking for new work and collaborative projects. Anna also frequently works under the pseudonym Vacantia, and more of her art can be found at her online gallery: http://www.vacantia.org.
