Dear Dangerous How Do You Explain It by Kazim Ali
“Dear unsettled evening, all the cold shadows, // how lucky we were to have lived / in the world—” — Kazim Ali
Act Now & Save by Kevin Young
“Whatever the well / you want me // To fall down I will—” — Kevin Young
My Crow by Raymond Carver
“It sat there on the branch for a few minutes. / Then picked up and flew beautifully / out of my life.” — Raymond Carver
Mission by A.R. Ammons
"as if anything here belonged to you / as if anything here were your concern"
Orchids Are Sprouting From the Floorboards by Kaveh Akbar
"The cat mews orchids from his mouth. / His whiskers are also orchids. / The grass is sprouting orchids. / It is becoming mostly orchids."
Performance After the End of the World by Talin Tahajian
"I’ve never been good / at caring very much about language except / when it matters the most."
I Am Not Ready To Die Yet by Aracelis Girmay
"I want to live longer. / I want to love you longer, say it again, / I want to love you longer / & sing that song / again."
Endings by Derek Walcott
"even love’s lightning flash / has no thunderous end, // it dies with the sound / of flowers fading like the flesh"
Reluctance by Robert Frost
“The heart is still aching to seek, / But the feet question ‘Whither?’” — Robert Frost