Red rock of Bisbee calls the ghosts out
as a doctor sucks poison from a bite
Back come the dead to walk again
reincarnation of secondhand spirits
—as secondhand furniture
The dresser is painted now
The couch new cloth
The set of chairs split apart
The headboard used for vines
In your years of living
—the painting under the painting
a past covered over and over
with false stories of forgotten moments
made to fill the gap of time
the living use between reading
the menu, and ordering the meal
Fat of the present melts off,
dead blood returns its moisture
to the air drying your muscles tight,
tight as new couch fabric
white as the dresser,
your set of ribs pull apart,
your head, a plot of vines.
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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