CITY COLLEGE STUDENTS

 

 

THIS NEW YEAR CALLS FOR AN EXORCISM  
 
there are two: 
one buried, reaching for silence and finding 
a note stuck to their stem—let’s be happy this year 
and this year only 
don’t know how many more there are left in me while discovering a new hole  
to hide in, pulling  
myself out of the ground and hoping something new takes root.  
 
the other, caught in a web of promises sticky with names i don’t remember and 
always forgot and kept safe on the sides of my notebook paper— 
 
this is how i survive the apocalypse  
the constant falling of bodies that i shed except the “i” is “you” and i don’t know  
who I am writing for anymore 
whether this is confrontation or surrender  
some things change but most things still hurt even when i grow teeth capable  
of tearing the world  
 
this is my resolution: to bite into my arm and not fill my mouth with blood  
 

  Nicolle B. Gutierrez  

 
 
42 ND  STREET SUBWAY 
 
on the left verbs on the center verbs on the edge verbs 
a silent suffering of verbs on the platform 
four minutes before the uptown 1 
 
before the rush with adjectives so many adjectives 
an adjective vapes 
another adjective urinates  
at the end of the platform near the do not enter sign  
 
two minutes before the uptown 1 

the uptown 2 vomits 
adverbs with backpacks sneakers low cut blouses  
gym shorts silicone phone covers 
 
some adverbs run up stairwells and facetime foreheads 
look at the time foreheads what about the rent foreheads 
why say something like that foreheads 
sprained ankle foreheads 
 
some verbs adjectives and adverbs block entrances  
knock over old verbs for a seat 
so others can push disabled adjectives 
out of the way 
so the inconsiderateness of backpacks 
can smack the shit out of standing verbs 
 
while quiet adverbs text adjectives 
text syllables upon syllables  
upon truth syllables  
upon conspiracy theory syllables  
poetic syllables 
it’s all syllables  
an irritable bowel movement of syllables  
the stench of which 
point fingers a the unhoused 
point fingers at politicians  

at rats 
at anyone but ourselves 

because we (adjectives, adverbs, verbs) 
forget we are a combination of syllables 
in this chaotic narrative soup 
 

  Hiram Rhöm Robert 

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