I.C.U.

--by Sophia Baradarian

Clock strikes 2.
Again.
Truth is,
no one’s ever believed
they’d be sitting there
in the tacky
hospital-issue blue chair
backed against
a starkly lit corridor.
Where the droplets outside
batter glass panels
brushing white ceiling,
to glimpse the strained face of
a sewn-up girlfriend
or catch the huffing rasp
of a dying, dead father.
One last time.
2:03 AM.
No wish made unto that pale,
pink candle of
a little girl’s
birthday cake,
enveloped in billowing folds of
vanilla buttercream
was for the steady
hiss...pump
of Mama’s
mechanical lungs.
Her timed breaths.
Clocking out,
much too soon.
The occasional
scuttle of sneakers
against white vinyl.
2:05.
Time’s up.
And…repeat.
Stifling scent of antiseptic,
shuffled papers,
slivers of death
murmured about
in voices so soft,
they fail to disturb
the weeping ghosts
hugging the walls.

The Tree

--by Rachel Pollack.

There’s something about the tree in the window
Something about the way it looks during the winter
When flakes of snow gently drape its branches
And how unbearably bare it becomes
When the wind is bitter and sharp
Forcing it still and silent

And how it is when the rain
Gives the tree what is desires
And the sun streams down its rays
To be soaked up into its core
And the tree sways calmly to the sound of the wind

And how bittersweet it is when its leaves drop
And the air smells of dampened earth
The clouds expel their withering breath
The scent of pine and musky dreams
And the tree dances as the wind screams

Welcome to 215 Lexicon

This is the first version of the blog we've been discussing in class. I've chosen this theme for now and customized it from the preset option. It's pretty bare bones, and we can change the appearance of the blog to suit our collective tastes later at some point. I've included links on the sidebar to each of your respective blogs and grouped you in the groups we assigned on Monday.

I need for you to do two things: First, please find your blog listing, and click on the link to make sure it works. Second, please create a link to this blog at your blog by adding a gadget to your sidebar. If you have trouble, I will show everyone in class how to do this. There's no hurry on this.

Note that you can always go here to find out what poems are up for workshop next. As soon as they have been chosen, I will list the author and title in the section on the right, labeled "Poets Up Next."

Email me if you have any problems or suggestions for the site. This is a work in progress!