Last Winter My Father Abandoned Me in the Forest With My Brother, Who Was Eaten by a Witch; I Burned Her to Death In the Spring.
Juleigh Howard-Hobson
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I’m alive — although I am not happy;
I am hungry most of the time, and when
It’s hot I’m thirsty. When the wind blows, tree
Pollen rains down in showers, then
I cough and cough and I’m miserable. My
Clothes are dirty and my hair is not
Combed, my face has not been cleaned recently–
Sweat streaked dust makes dark rivers of dirt (shot
With pollen) that trickle down my arms and
Legs and neck and back. Today there is smoke
Blowing out from the forest in grey bands
Of gritty mist. My eyes sting as I choke,
Hot dry air assaults my skin and winds drive
Ash and dust at my face. Still, I’m alive.
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Juleigh Howard-Hobson’s work has appeared in many places, including Think Journal, Great Weather for Media, Able Muse, Valparaiso Poetry Review, Prime Number Magazine, War Literature & The Arts, Consequence, and The Lyric. She is a Million Writers “Notable Writer” and has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize, the Best of the Net and the Rhysling. Her fifth and most recent book is Our Otherworld (Red Salon Press).
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Posted in Boudin 2020, Poetry and tagged in #boudin, #juleighhowardhobson, #mcneesereview, Poetry