THE MUSEUM OF BROKEN THINGS
after Rachel McKibbens
step through the turnstile and bear witness / bear witness to the unbearable / the unbearable begins with a field of strawberries / a field of strawberries emptying their red red hearts / their red red hearts empty onto the hillside / the hillside and the strawberries and the boy break open / the boy breaks open mouthed and flying / open mouthed and flying the boy kisses rusted steel soft / rusted steel soft and savage toothed / savage toothed gears rattle a cigarette boat still / a cigarette boat still as a grave in the backyard / a grave in the backyard for the tip of the knife / the tip of the knife and the ankle fracture / the ankle fractures against the pavement / the pavement leads to a water warped picture bible / picture bibles for all the kids on the day of baptism / on the day of baptism a limp wristed wave / a limp wristed wave and the cold slap of a truck door / a truck door slaps shut and the gear shift punches down / down down down the hall of mirrors / the hall of mirrors laughs / itself to sleep
Author’s note on this POSSESSION-themed poem:
I chose this poem for Possession because it was, for me, an exercise in seeing how I both possess and am possessed by anxieties directly tied to formative memories from my childhood. A memory palace of sorts, but more funhouse than reality, each memory reflected indefinitely, distorted.
Ronnie K. Stephens holds a Bachelor of Arts in Classical Studies, a Master of Arts in Creative Writing, a Master of Fine Arts in Fiction, and a PhD in English. His research centers the role of poetry in subverting antiethnic and anti-LGBTQ legislation affecting public education. He is the author of three books: Universe in the Key of Matryoshka, They Rewrote Themselves Legendary, and The Kaleidoscope Sisters.