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.