poetry-magazineFrom “Underworlds”By Kimberly Johnson i The last time I lost you, I had turned To salt. The hospice nurses all assured An easier passing… Related Audio LivingDeathHealth & IllnessSorrow & GrievingVerse FormsSonnetGrief
Callie Barr's Black BottomBy Malcolm Tariq You may find her behind Rowan Oak, a shadow of fortress where then now you find no real entry…Social CommentariesClassRace & EthnicityLivingDeathSorrow & GrievingBlameGrief
The Thin LineBy Meredith StrickerEvery morning opening the newspaper, I am facedwith the thin line that divides disaster and deprivation…Social CommentariesWar & ConflictHistory & PoliticsLivingDeath
If You KnewBy Ellen BassWhat if you knew you'd be the lastto touch someone?If you were taking tickets, for example,at the theater…LivingDeathLife ChoicesThe MindDoubt & ContemplationRelationships
poetry-magazineUniversal TruthsBy Shira Haus I prayed for my friend to live and he didn’t. I held his puffy hand, his heart jumping green on the… Related Audio LivingDeathGrief
poetry-magazineMother’s MotherBy Khari Dawsonmom tells me I smell likeher Mom—something flowery and the blackened endingsof a joint.I feared her … Related Audio LivingDeathSorrow & GrievingRelationshipsFamily & Ancestors
poetry-magazineAs a child, I knew nothing about griefBy Rasaq Malik Gbolahanuntil the clock of my grandmother’s body stopped working & her remainswere lowered into the earth on… Related Audio LivingDeathSorrow & GrievingGrief
poetry-magazineThings not to do to a grieving motherBy Kaylee ChengDo not tell her that Grandma is watching her from above. She is not religious. (And nervous about the…LivingDeathGrief
poetry-magazineThe WakeBy Blas FalconerIn Francisco Oller’s El Velorio, a child lieson a table as if sleeping. It is covered in laceand blossoms… Related Audio LivingDeathParenthood
poetry-magazineIs This My Last Ferry Trip?By Martha SilanoIs this the last time I’ll admire the guysin their neon-yellow slickers, guiding usto our parking spots… Related Audio LivingDeathHealth & IllnessThe Body
poetry-magazineSelf-Elegies By Martha SilanoBecause why not? Why not take the smashed pinecone of my life, render it in purple? Why not dream of… Related Audio LivingDeathHealth & IllnessThe BodyTypes/ModesElegy
Icarus Does the DishesBy It leaves a mark on me when I fallin my father's kitchen.Only a few days it's beenof lifting him up …LivingDeathHealth & IllnessSorrow & GrievingThe BodyRelationshipsFamily & Ancestors
The Vulture & the BodyBy Ada LimónOn my way to the fertility clinic, I pass five dead animals.First a raccoon with all four paws…NatureAnimalsLivingDeathParenthoodThe MindDoubt & ContemplationGrief
The Two-headed CalfBy Laura GilpinTomorrow when the farm boys find thisfreak of nature, they will wrap his bodyin newspaper and carry …NatureAnimalsLivingDeathBirthOptimism
Easter MorningBy Andrew Frisardi PRIMEAt dawn, the shapes of cypresses in fogWere fingers pointing up from graves, as if what's born…NatureLandscapes & PastoralsLivingDeathSorrow & GrievingEasterVerse FormsSonnetStanza FormsRhymed Stanza + 3 more
The Haunted HouseBy Felicia Dorothea HemansSee’st thou yon gray gleaming hall,Where the deep elm-shadows fall?Voices that have left the earth …LivingDeathSorrow & GrievingThe MindMemory & NostalgiaMythology & FolkloreGhosts & the SupernaturalHalloweenStanza FormsRhymed StanzaGrief + 4 more
The TowerBy William Butler Yeats I What shall I do with this absurdity — O heart, O troubled heart — this caricature, Decrepit age …LivingDeathGrowing OldTypes/ModesSeries/Sequence
poetry-magazineDeciding to End Your Life, You Thank MeBy Molly PeacockWhen you looked up and said, “Thank you,” I saw your gratitude rise over us like rain. It seemed external… Related Audio LivingDeathGratitude
poetry-magazineTinker Bell & My HusbandBy Molly Peacock Of all the times I wished you would die quick, my despair ballooning like a cartoon bubble (but kept… Related Audio LivingDeath
All Souls’ NightBy William Butler YeatsMidnight has come and the great Christ Church bellAnd many a lesser bell sound through the room;And …ReligionThe SpiritualLivingDeathThe MindMemory & NostalgiaMythology & FolkloreGhosts & the Supernatural