by Katie Leigh

Wouldn’t we all be better off,

if I left it alone? Let awful things

sit off by themselves,

while we sprawl out on the floor.

 

Let’s hold each other— like bruised fruits,

schoolboys marooned,

scraping flies from a rotting boar head.

 

We can pretend we only have each other,

nothing else.

 

Pretend,

it’s not embarrassing to ask for things,

to be held or to hold,

and when the evil mouth opens

spouting foreign-tongued philosophy,

we can go on pretending

 

our hands are not empty, as if someone

is waiting for us.                   Wading for us,

knee deep into the ocean, searching for the broken frames

of our glasses.

 

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Katie Leigh (she/her) is a Junior at Oklahoma State University. She is pursuing dual degrees in English and History, meaning she spends much of her free time writing essays. In the future, she hopes to attend graduate school, write even more essays, and continue pursuing her goal of publishing original poetry. In her work, she explores topics such as social issues, relationships, and mental illness. She currently lives in Stillwater, Oklahoma in an apartment overrun with roommates.