Introduction to Every Atom by project curator Brian Clements
I was born from molten song—my mother was Pele,
volcano goddess; she spewed and I fell into Filene’s, where
my foster parents found me, 50% off, no refunds, no
returns—I was born in the land of ice and snow where I
slipped and fell, hill after hill; no one suggested crampons
and I was angry, but I cooled, and now my trade is
ice-cutter—ostensibly, I was born in Wisconsin but who
says I did not ride in on the back of the huge,
green-and-brown spotted turtle that masquerades as Isle
Royale, in Lake Superior—in truth, I was born in clouds
and sadness, nothing less or more, gulping milk sprayed
from the breasts of Cassiopeia—
Lisa Bellamy teaches at The Writers Studio. She is author of The Northway (Terrapin Books) and a chapbook, Nectar (Encircle Publications). She has received a Pushcart Prize and Special Mention and a Fugue Poetry Prize. She grew up in Wisconsin and lives in Brooklyn and the Adirondacks.
Cover art by Mike Tyer