Jessica Mehta

THESE ARE STRANGE DAYS,

   the world mourning as one—all my 
life heart
breaks were solitary
pursuits and now, naked
streets wail back
at the vacuum roaring
inside. We panic by:
arms pregnant with moly,
snowy softness 
brings us back
to mama’s arms (remember,
at one time, someone loved us)
more than their own skin     breath                          every
thing we’ve ever hunted 
and howled for is slipping 
off shaking shelves. When did            home
get so keeningly lonesome to bear?

As an indigenous woman and citizen of the Cherokee Nation, much of Jessica Mehta’s work reflects place, space, ancestry, and lineage. Recent accomplishments include the 2020 Birdy Prize by Meadowlark Books (for what will be her 14th book), a 2020 gold award for her poetry collection Savagery, and her solo exhibition "emBODY poetry" at Open Signal New Media in Portland, OR.