Wild Goose Poetry Review, No 33, Fall 2017
TO THE GIRL AFTER ME
He likes his coffee black
Eggs sunny side up
He reads the paper daily
Except the sports
He loves Billy Joel
Can’t stand Pink Floyd
He goes for a jog in the evening
Takes a shower upon returning
He buys flowers as gifts
A pretty vase to match
He answers the phone at midnight
Knowing exactly what to say
He holds you close
Breathes you in
Knows when things aren’t right
Eventually runs out of second chances
He wonders why I didn’t love him
Because I didn’t let it show
He believes you can fix his heart
Please don’t let us down
*Previously published in Cantos, Lenoir-Rhyne University’s literary magazine.
ASHES TO ASHES
I wonder if the phoenix ever gets tired.
All that birth and death and
being reborn over and over again.
Waking up to sun or clouds or
snow, but knowing that nothing
has really changed.
Men and women and
children being born and dying and
giving birth just fast enough
that they never quite die out.
It must be exhausting, bursting
into flames, having your entire being
swallowed up in the blink of an eye,
having to crawl back up
through the mess you made
that’s not really your fault,
but just a fact of life.
I wonder if the phoenix gets tired
the same way we get tired,
crawling through the mess
of the world around us,
trying to make sense of it all
as things inevitably go up in smoke,
still searching for reasons
to dig through the ashes
in hope of something new.
AFTER GEITNER
What if I just
disappear?
Turn left where it says
“Go Right”.
Feel silky fronds of ferns
caress my calves,
needles of pines
tickle my arms,
let wisteria weave
a crown in my hair
as I delve deep into woods.
Ask not to be rescued
if I’m found, say
I’ve taken up residence
with the ivy and oak.
Let my shoes wear away,
slink around on bare feet,
laugh at those relying on
the smooth path and boots.
Dine on berry and nut and beauty,
bask in sun, revel in rain,
enjoy symphonies by
bird and running river.
Do it all
without a trace.
REBIRTH
Here we come again,
seeking comfort in
sun and sky,
truth in the limbs
of trees stretching far
above our heads.
You are beside me,
seeking my hand,
life dancing
in the pulse
of your thumb.
Winter chased us
from this place, frost
encasing our haven,
cold creeping in
like a vine,
wrapping around and
strangling the heart.
The return of the birds
gave us the courage to
emerge, to try again.
The silence is finally shattered
by the call of a robin.
Bio: Katelyn Vause (Assistant Editor) is a senior English major at Lenoir-Rhyne University with minors in Creative Writing and Biology. In addition to being an Assistant Editor for Wild Goose Poetry Review, she is also the Assistant Editor for Lenoir-Rhyne’s literary magazine, Cantos, a Tutor at the Writing Center, and a Student Assistant for the campus Visiting Writers Series. She is a proud native of North Carolina and loves exploring its various landscapes and writing about them. Her poetry has appeared in Cantos, the 2016 edition of Kakalak and Hickory Museum of Art’s “Art of Poetry”. Her prose has appeared in Cantos as well, and she has blogged about her travels while studying abroad in England. Katelyn is currently in the process of applying to MFA in Creative Writing and MA in English programs, and she plans to become a Professor of English and Creative Writing.
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