“I am not a whole, only disjointed pieces held together the way two ventricles taped to an aorta won’t beat.” HeartDeathLossGriefDyingDepressionBereavement Book:Survived By: A Memoir in Verse + Other Poems Source: Survived By: A Memoir in Verse + Other Poems
“I feel disconnected from the people who I know have not experienced the exposed nerves of a close loved one yanked by pliers from one's jaws. I am different from them now. They can’t know the festering wound staining my teeth red, can't know the taste of salt and iron in everything I eat.” PainDeathLossGriefCancerTraumaBereavement Book:Survived By: A Memoir in Verse + Other Poems Source: Survived By: A Memoir in Verse + Other Poems
“The drought came with the volcano. Street lamps frowned through ash-made dark. Homes turned into hills with chimneys peeking out the summits. We hummed as we trudged through the wreckage, until our hums turned into songs. We didn’t know what else to do. Tears wouldn’t water the grass. Cries wouldn’t call the birds home.” DeathLossDiagnosisDroughtAshWreckageVolcanoChimney Book:Survived By: A Memoir in Verse + Other Poems Source: Survived By: A Memoir in Verse + Other Poems