London 1818 CE by Ryan Holden

..................................corpse-stitch & electric

a storm or brilliant mind



..................................collect the bones of animals

left uneaten



..................................dredge the river for clay

malleable to skin



..................................wrap new flesh around a frame

(take care to curse the microscopic)



..................................a body is charged with nothing

more than a motivation to understand itself



..................................& what sin is visited

on a seeker of ordinary paths



..................................subtract a calling &

leave philosophy drifting on the ice






Ryan Holden is a graduate student in Creative Writing at Arizona State University. As part of an international travel fellowship, he will be teaching creative writing at Sichuan University in Chengdu, China, this summer.