A Poem by Anna McCluskey

Found

As the needle compresses
her bones melt and
she oozes out between the slats of her parents' picket
fence
Her gelatinous form
slinks along the curbs of
dozens of streets
through dozens of
months
Each time she tries to
form an arm from
the liquid she has become
and reach the hovering glow
of satiation just above her
shape diminishes that much more
Until one day someone
stepping in her puddle
leaves a piece behind

Life blooms within her and
she finds herself solidifying
once again
She reaches up and finds
that fullness in another
way and she is
emptied out again and
holds her daughter in
her new-found arms




Anna McCluskey is a fresh new voice in the poetry world.  She studied creative writing at Saint Louis University, and currently lives in Portland, OR.