Dana Blatte
Maladaptive
I hold my hands waiting for someone
to shape me to carry
snowdrifts, deer tracks, porchlights
muted by winter. Air in the suburbs hangs
like a sheet. I could cut through it or
just as easily be smothered. The book I read
reveals no definitions. My house wanders
after me searching for kindergarten paintings,
a dusty mirror, my brothers who slant across doorways.
A poet once told me not to breathe by graveyards
so I do not breathe at all. To survive this long
I have learned to dream eyes pitched-open.
A friend teaches me to sign my name with a flourish,
to befriend hummingbirds, how to stop my heart
from overflowing. I fold my hands like a book. Like a blade.
Like I am a siphon, pressing the hilt in my back.
Dana Blatte is an undergraduate at Hamilton College studying Creative Writing and Anthropology. Her poetry and flash fiction have been published in The Adroit Journal, Lunch Ticket, The Shore, and more. She loves fairy tales, unnecessarily long walks, and sweet treats. Find her on Twitter @infflorescence.
Return to January 2024 Edition
I hold my hands waiting for someone
to shape me to carry
snowdrifts, deer tracks, porchlights
muted by winter. Air in the suburbs hangs
like a sheet. I could cut through it or
just as easily be smothered. The book I read
reveals no definitions. My house wanders
after me searching for kindergarten paintings,
a dusty mirror, my brothers who slant across doorways.
A poet once told me not to breathe by graveyards
so I do not breathe at all. To survive this long
I have learned to dream eyes pitched-open.
A friend teaches me to sign my name with a flourish,
to befriend hummingbirds, how to stop my heart
from overflowing. I fold my hands like a book. Like a blade.
Like I am a siphon, pressing the hilt in my back.
Dana Blatte is an undergraduate at Hamilton College studying Creative Writing and Anthropology. Her poetry and flash fiction have been published in The Adroit Journal, Lunch Ticket, The Shore, and more. She loves fairy tales, unnecessarily long walks, and sweet treats. Find her on Twitter @infflorescence.
Return to January 2024 Edition