InDigest: Poetics - Erica Wright

I have the air of an heiress tonight, and you,

you've never looked better in blue, my boy.

If only you wouldn't hit the keys so hard.

I can hear them pop into place.

Sometimes a muscle twists in my chest

and must be reset. Even after, I can feel

the socket. It can be avoided

by better posture, as can being left

for a taller woman, someone

who doesn't sit for hours in the dark

with the radio on like some kind

of Tennessee Williams heroine. I promised

no love songs and intend to show restraint.

To what, then, shall we dance?

Erica Wright received her M.F.A. in Poetry from Columbia University. She is the

Poetry Editor at Guernica and teaches at the City University of New York. Her poems have appeared in The 2River View, Bateau, DMQ Review, Harpur Palate, Memorious, Pequod, and Small Spiral Notebook (online). For up-to-date information, check out her blog.