on a kayak in this miami bedroom By Stella Santamaría

on a kayak in this miami bedroom

position hands to take on
gloves

moor into lifeboat
moor into canals
unknown
to meet you

on a kayak
lightweight

huddle in a curl

position hands to take on
gloves

porcelain rectangle
floor tiles
no motor
no noise

what language is that
bedroom
beats

your voice
catches salt
sight

egrets wings
in the tiles
in the brackish water between
florida tiles
of this

bedroom beats

tongues
in mouth
linger

on tongues
against teeth

water taffy
clear

murky mangroves
sea grape waves

swap
out of bed
curl

in a kayak

navigating
through you

your veins
chambers

aorta

By Stella Santamaría

Biography

Santamaría was born in Los Angeles, daughter of a Cuban father and Guatemalan mother. Stella holds an MFA in Creative Writing (Poetry) from Saint Mary’s College of California, recipient of the School of Liberal Arts Dean’s Award. Her poetry has been recently published in The Acentos Review, Nine Mile Magazine, The Rumpus, Courtship of Winds, Juked and The Brooklyn Review, among others. She is The Sandra Cisneros Fellow at Under the Volcano 2021 and an alumna of the Community of Writers. Currently Stella lives in Miami.

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