Not for You Not This

take the veil / take the vow
take the swallowed lie—ragged quartz
caught in your throat

chuck it all into the river of
not this life

remember your mentor’s words
write what you know

you can write of want
so strong it manifests
as a kick in the ribs / breath bought with effort
bruised flesh

you can write about the wet clay man
propped up on your potter’s wheel
pedestal

but not of love
inkblot clouding the retina
foreign as the taste of a dried lakebed
on Mars









M. Stone is a bookworm, birdwatcher, and stargazer who writes poetry and fiction while living in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Her poems have appeared in San Pedro River Review, SOFTBLOW, Calamus Journal, and numerous other print and online journals. writermstone.wordpress.com