of hearts and flowers
the meat heart speaks for itself: earnest, wet, essential.
the dream heart? that tree, blocking the river's path. damming its fierce flow.
the broken-heart emoji picks up pieces that the whole-heart emoji leaves bleeding on the floor. liars both, as if the heart for hurt could be different from the heart for love.
take care
not to squish the tender organ
regard it from a distance and honor
the do-not-disturb sign
a little fish
found safe harbor there
to be soft in the world, complicated,
i'll be a peony, unfurling slowly, layer upon layer, my inner parts hidden.
i'll invite who comes, the tiny crawlers entering to gather their victuals, exploring my maze of translucent petals.
we are secrets, all the way down.
let us share our mystery, away from the eyes of the world.
the juice of life
pulsates
against the current
our fish
swims
afterbits
- a few months ago, arya natarajan, aka seastarya, who creates incredible nature-focused, educational zines and trading cards, published the zine “nature loved & lost (filter feeder vol. 1 || spring 2025)”. sharing the pages with a ton of wonderful pieces by talented writers and artists is my poem “veilator,” about living in a post-bird world. all proceeds from zine sales go to wildfire relief efforts in los angeles.
- meet my fun and generally wonderful scientist pal andreana and her buttondown featuring artwork, zines, and tales from the crypt of chronic illness. her work appears in “nature loved and lost,” too.