Heliocentric

sing, o muse,
of the pain of
watching a loved thing fall.

of daedalus, hands reaching down,
down, down,
hands extended as far as they
could extend, hands
turning to claws in frustration —

of daedalus, able to create
anything, but unable to bring
his own son back to life.

of phaethon, back arched in a
final bow, ground rushing
to meet him, hands hands hands
burning / burning.

of helios, laughing.

of apollo, chasing and chasing
until a girl is no longer a girl
but a laurel tree.

of the sun and its heat,
its scathing, of fires
ravaging through troy,
through houses, through
people
(screams in the air, along
with the stench of flesh).

let me tell you of the sun
and how it burnt me down
from the inside out,
how it makes my knees
knock like they’re filled
with a dozen wasps.

here is another myth:
girl wakes and sees the sun /
girl goes back to sleep.

By Darshana Suresh

Biography:

Darshana Suresh is a 19-year-old Indian born poet residing in New Zealand, where she is currently studying Psychology and English Literature. In her free time, she can either be found planning novels that are never written, or dreaming about all the places she has not seen. She’s not okay yet, but she’s trying to be.