The Exchange is the Weekly’s poetry corner, where a poem or piece of writing is presented with a prompt. Readers are welcome to respond to the prompt with original poems, and pieces may be featured in the next issue of the Weekly.
KonMari, a Survival Tactic by Chima “Naira” Ikoro
I have two vivid memories of standing in the hallway
where the walls part for the bathroom,
my sisters old room,
my old room,
my brothers room, (all the same room)
and my parents’ room.
In the first memory,
we’ve discovered my uncle is soaring past
the upper room
where there’s a nap waiting for him
that no hospital bed could ever promise.
In the second memory,
Escitalopram has used the Marie Kondo Method
on my brain, and now I have room
for the person that lives there to lie down
on something more than a pile of clean laundry
worn by other people
but washed and dried by me.
In both memories,
silence.
Not a single thought wriggling up my back.
In the first memory,
I am too young
to understand grief enough to cry.
In the second, grief
has outlived some of my friends
and is finally taking a nap for the first time
that no backseat of a car or ambulance
could ever promise.
In the first,
the silence is out of respect for the dead.
In the second,
the silence is out of respect for myself,
alive finally.
Prompt:
“What is something you remember vividly for seemingly no reason? What does recalling this tell you about yourself?”
This could be a poem, journal entry, or a stream-of-consciousness piece. Submissions could be new or formerly written pieces.
Submissions can be sent to bit.ly/ssw-exchange or via email to chima.ikoro@southsideweekly.com
Featured below is a response to a previous prompt from a reader. The last poem and prompt can be found online.
the freedom i feel when i am practicing yoga outdoors by Victoria Mendiola
the wind
whispers my name
“v i c t o r i a”
the sun
tickles my face
with warmth
the soil welcomes
my feet
with grass blade
kisses
all of nature
embraces me
a love that is omnipresent
a freedom that is felt
a truth that is known
“i am a part of you
and
you are a part of me”
Chima Ikoro is the Weekly’s Community Builder.