Puppeteer
You turn me
Like a camera setting
Normal to negative
With a click
My voice modulates
To your ear
High tones dialed down
Pitch bent skewed
You hand me a script
Q and A for the party
Lists topics to avoid
People I may talk to
How do I look?
You look me over
Black evening dress
Hair up, heels high
Proper posture
Oh, you forgot these…
I touch my ears,
Barren of drops, and smile.
You turn to reach inside a drawer
And pull out strings.
 |
“Marionette Series” Oil on canvas
by Sarah Dixon |
Published by Shannon Laws
Shannon Laws is an award-winning poet, performer, and advocate for the arts. She has been recognized with two Mayor’s Arts Awards and the Dr. Asha Bhargava Memorial Award — Community Champion. Her work has been featured in numerous journals and anthologies, and she has captivated audiences at esteemed literary events, including the Jack McCarthy Evergreen Invitational Slam, SpeakEasy, Poetry Night, Kitchen Sessions, and the West Coast Tagore Festival.
Beyond her writing and performances, Shannon actively fosters literary
and artistic communities. Since 2022, she has curated Corridor, a monthly
“found-art” zine project that showcases the work of more than 50 contributing
poets and artists. She is also the founder and host of Poetry Club, an engaging
discussion group established in 2015.
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shannon p. laws 