WHAT IS WORN IS WHAT HAS LIVED The wild rose was full with winter birds settled on the risen snow. Chickadee, nuthatch, junco. And in another house, your dying nearly complete. And the air thickening with snow, but the birds remained. How the heart closes a door so silently, nothing disturbs the quiet. And you […]
VALLUM CHAPBOOK AWARD 2021 FINALITS | David Harvgreaves | WE’RE ALL GONNA DIE SOMEDAY
POSTCARD FROM THE ICE STORM — Independence, Oregon. January 2021 Dear N— Gone to bed happy, one hundred percent chance of a snow day, they say— midnight—gun-shot reports of tree-trunks cracked in two, ice-glazed oak chandeliers shattering on the rotunda floor. Utility poles crushing cars, the arctic insurrection cuts internet access, freezing assets and truth conditions. […]
VALLUM CHAPBOOK AWARD 2021 FINALIST | Emma Rhodes | QUEER/JOY
TAPAS The first time I thought I was queer was after kissing my best friend in 7th grade. Or maybe …………………….. it was when I ate an apple. ……………………………………… The curve of the core and ……………………………………… seed so hidden and ……………………………………… poisonous. Maybe …………………….. it was drinking tea ……………………………………… with another friend and playing chess. […]
VALLUM CHAPBOOK AWARD 2021 FINALIST | Sally Quon | LAID WASTE
ONE MORE MOUNTAIN SUNRISE One more mountain sunrise, golden light, clouds of peach and lilac. The forest calls – I answer. Road dust and moss, pinecones and birdsong. I was going to write a poem for you. Instead, I chose one more mountain sunrise. Sally Quon is a back-country blogger, dirt-road diva, and teller […]
VALLUM CHAPBOOK AWARD 2021 FINALIST | Malcolm Sanger | STONE SERIES
if the forest heard is …………… it’s mirrors …. over ………………offering ………. until
a ….. jungle ….. here ……………. turn …………………………………… .dressed
leaping in ………………………………………………………………………. … mistakes
…………………………………………… are, as they all say ………………. embarrassed
…………………………………………… over—whelming …………………..mushrooms
…………………………………………………………………………………………… images