"The Lie" by Emanuela Iorga
hunting by Fiona Lu
On Saturday you went hunting with the brother
whose name you never learned. In a moor shaped
like a fist he prayed and preyed until the lavender
blossoms forgot his face. You watched as he tore
sparrows into endings that sung, minced rabbits
into atlases of light. This was the second time your
brother has tried to teach you about survival. The
first happened at the top of a staircase, where he
taught you that every good son dies when they’re
told to. That he is not a good son. As your brother
drew a blade, unraveled the pelts of smaller things,
you wondered what kind of boy sharpens his breaths
to knifepoint. What kind of boy becomes your vice.
But this poem is not about your bruised shins at the
bottom of a staircase. Nor is it about the time he
stuck his hand into a fishtank and squeezed--
no matter how much you want it to be. Rather, it’s
about your brother’s favorite bruises, his calloused
palms, the way he always clasps his hands in apology
before he feasts.
whose name you never learned. In a moor shaped
like a fist he prayed and preyed until the lavender
blossoms forgot his face. You watched as he tore
sparrows into endings that sung, minced rabbits
into atlases of light. This was the second time your
brother has tried to teach you about survival. The
first happened at the top of a staircase, where he
taught you that every good son dies when they’re
told to. That he is not a good son. As your brother
drew a blade, unraveled the pelts of smaller things,
you wondered what kind of boy sharpens his breaths
to knifepoint. What kind of boy becomes your vice.
But this poem is not about your bruised shins at the
bottom of a staircase. Nor is it about the time he
stuck his hand into a fishtank and squeezed--
no matter how much you want it to be. Rather, it’s
about your brother’s favorite bruises, his calloused
palms, the way he always clasps his hands in apology
before he feasts.
Fiona Lu is a student from the Bay Area who is passionate about storytelling, no matter what form it may take. Her work has been recognized by the Alliance for Artists and Writers and published in Sine Theta Mag and Kissing Dynamite, among others. In her free time, she likes to read YA novels and think about the stars. She hopes you have a nice day!
Emanuela Iorga is a filmmaker, artist, and screenwriter, who lives in Chisinau, Moldova. Art represents for her a recently rediscovered passion, following a series of world and inner changes. Her work can be found at https://manolcaincosmos.wordpress.com/270-2/
