Clam by Mary Oliver
"Each one is a small life, but sometimes long, if its / place in the universe is not found out."
apology by George Abraham
"forgive the bodies i swallowed like broken teeth: the knees i spent trying to summon god in my own mouth:"
untitled by Rachel McKibbens
"Last Love, I am all that is left. Forgive me. / I did not see you coming. Forgive me. // Last Love, every day without you was a life / I crawled out of. Amen."
The Cats Will Know by Cesare Pavese
"You too will make gestures. / You’ll answer with words— / face of springtime, / you too will make gestures."
How to Begin by Catherine Abbey Hodges
"Step into your ribcage. // Feel the draft of your heart's doors / as they open and close."
Loyalties by Roo Borson
"Remember the long / mouthwatering days, each place / we rested, just taking it in."
Scurvy by Faith Shearin
"All the old / wounds were new, as if / time had undone itself, as if / each injury is permanent, / just waiting to show itself again."
Poem Full of Worry Ending with My Birth by Tarfia Faizullah
"I worry I can no longer pretend / enough to get through another / year of pretending
You with the Crack Running Through You by Kim Addonizio
"But isn’t it drafty at night, / alone in that canyon / with the wind of the mind / dragging its debris—"
What it costs by Marge Piercy
"While / the heart kicks / like a strangled rabbit / and the lungs buckle / like poor balloons: / I will survive."