6.05 / May 2011

Two Poems

Carolyn Zaikowski

WHAT IT WAS

The waterfall was a waterfall. That’s really all. I want to say it was like a river tipped over, or a slippery tongue blasting outwards from a rock face, or a translucent liquid finale to a dream in which I loved you. But it was a waterfall. Water, falling. Dropping. Down. Down.

SHOES

There are no words this time
in this white room
with the bed screwed into the middle
of the floor
No words to say
to this plaid blanket

I used to have words.
When I asked the men, who are you and
why are you here? They replied
you have to put on your shoes

Carolyn Zaikowski's fiction, poetry, and critical work has appeared in such publications as MONKEY PUZZLE, WE ARE CHAMPION, NEBULA: A JOURNAL OF MULTIDISCIPLINARY SCHOLARSHIP, ESQUE, NOO JOURNAL, FACT-SIMILE, GET FRESH MAGAZINE, WEST WIND REVIEW, and others. She edits the online literary magazine DINOSAUR BEES and holds an MFA in Creative Writing from Naropa University. She lives in Northampton, Massachusetts. Find her at www.liferoar.wordpress.com.

6.05 / May 2011