Poetry by Emily Bender-Nelson
I wake up under a mosquito net from a dream where you and I were searching for the perfect hot fudge sundae, and I send you an email about it. You are amazed that someone so far away is thinking of you. You say you’ll give your dog a treat for me, make her bound around and up and down for it. My housemates are watching a video about how to survive a hostage situation. You send me a picture of Washington Street, looking east. My relatives are playing Rook and Dutch Blitz. You did a howdy with my friend. I went cross-country skiing today. I send you a picture of a BMW 2002 from the 60s and you don’t like the two tone top treatment but it’s nice. I had duck enchiladas for dinner. Your friend died, he used to play in that band with your other friend. You’ll drink superman beers. I’m getting lots of advice. You’ll pick me up at 435 Peachtree St NW at 9:15 pm tomorrow, even though I’m not one hundred percent sold on Steely Dan. I love u-pick orchards, the liberation of ripe cherries has always been a moral cause for me. You got a mostly complete old trumpet from the flea market. I send you a video about mundane journeys but you can’t see it. My favorite is the guy who had the same idea when he was fourteen. You don’t think it’s funny. You are lucky to be alive. People are asking you about me. I would prefer not to. Tell them she’s fine, she did, she doesn’t know, yes, yes, jam omelette. You do love me, but being with me is like being with four different girls, and three of them are just fucking with you. I am not your rescue dog. You are sorry. I am a twister, a cathedral, a feral hymn.
Emily Bender-Nelson is a poet and visual artist from the American South living in The Hague. Her work has appeared or is forthcoming in Amethyst Review, FERAL, and Pictura Journal. By day she works in international migration and human rights; in the early mornings she writes toward memory and small prophecies, and in the evenings she is training in metalsmithing. Connect with her on instagram @emilynowhere.
Arcturus 