the cotton of her blouse
Jennifer MacBain-Stephens
waivers
against staff paper torso paper dart shadow
perfect rectangular bench
drifted night mosquito circumference hum
weighted crab grass breaths
sweetest notes exit porch door
E major G minor C major chords
lowest gravitas utilizes B flat
letters plunk disappear into dusty corners
Repeat
repeat
crescendo
A staccato that little death
Mezzo piano unfolds pulls a melancholy tide
it is here
no, here
an instrument knocks, hammers fall, strum
under ghost light
ivory old time heat
succumbs to the pedal
a fox hides in blackberries
Jennifer MacBain-Stephens went to NYU but currently lives in the DC area with her family. She is the author of three chapbooks: Every Her Dies (ELJ Publications), Clotheshorse (Finishing Line Press, 2014) and Backyard Poems (Dancing Girl Press, 2015). Recent work can be seen or is forthcoming at Toad Suck Review, The Poetry Storehouse, Pretty Owl Poetry, Yes, Poetry, Gargoyle Magazine, Jet Fuel Review, Glittermob, The Norfolk Review, Moss Trill and Hobart. MacBain-Stephens is online at JenniferMacBainStephens.wordpress.com.
