I keep pecking at the eggshell of this world
every dose
is a down-payment on death
even an avalanche begins with a flurry
with accumulation
I’m killing myself with my own friendly fire
one white bullet at a time
I have no desire to be a cautionary tale
a narrative
of excess and extinction
but the itchy sweater of sobriety
has never fit well
and always unravels
at the most inconvenient times

 

“On Another Planet” © DL Polonsky

 

I switch addictions
like a farmer rotates crops
harvesting lush poetry
as the stars lose their stamina
or yielding nothing but barren dirt
the empty pages
weigh heaviest on me
ghost words I can feel
but cannot see
these phantom poems
lurk in empty bottles
the same empty bottles
that glint beneath the sun
as they waste away in the heaping landfill
of my wasted days.

 

Bekah Steimel is an internationally published poet living in St. Louis. Find her in The Blue Hour, Gutter Eloquence, Mad Swirl, and more. Bekah’s pastimes include flirting, drinking whiskey and making people uncomfortable. Visit her website and and follow her at @BekahSteimel.

DL Polonsky is a Boston area artist, writer, and filmmaker. His caricatures have appeared in The Boston Herald and His written work includes the children’s book The Letter Bandits from T.B.W. Books.