Overlook the
sneer
passing remark
scornful glare
Smells so foul to
drench the neighborhoods in
capes of pity and shame
Held threadbare only by the
dreams of its people
Dug by
calloused hands
Cracked and tangled and
placed upon the Mississippi delta with
Streams that carved canyons and
Eroded the mountains of your spine and
Stained the concrete jungle a deep, deep
Blue
A Blue that
echoes in my soul and
Keeps
One
Steady
Beat.
That seeps through brick walls like
needlework that traces
Your veins and
marks our streets
Chips away at plaster that leaves
You bare and reveals the
skeleton of a man
with broken bones
But who refuses to fall
It coaxes a smile and swells
a pride
that unfurls and
sweeps and curls around
my ears and
Beats through my chest and
intertwines our hands
into one
I didn’t marry a man
I married a city
And I said, “I do.”
Anahis Luna is a high school senior from Memphis, Tennessee. When she's not stressing over coursework or trying a new paint technique, you can find her obsessing over The Beatles and cookbook recipes.
Arina Stetsiuk is a 12-year-old student from Kremenets, Ukraine, who lives with her parents, a dog, a cat, and her favorite blue parrot, Richy. Her house is next to the woods, so she enjoys the beauty of nature. Her little hometown, Kremenets, is located in the west of Ukraine and is surrounded by the Carpathian Mountains, which is why Arina loves drawing and painting whenever she has free time. Her hobbies also include crafts and drawing.
Arina Stetsiuk is a 12-year-old student from Kremenets, Ukraine, who lives with her parents, a dog, a cat, and her favorite blue parrot, Richy. Her house is next to the woods, so she enjoys the beauty of nature. Her little hometown, Kremenets, is located in the west of Ukraine and is surrounded by the Carpathian Mountains, which is why Arina loves drawing and painting whenever she has free time. Her hobbies also include crafts and drawing.
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Art by Jaden Flach, Brooklyn
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Art by Jaden Flach, Brooklyn