Judith Sandler: Poetry Collection

SE Decision Street

Cover your body in rags

made from ripped-up, torn, unwanted thrifted dresses

and cover your face in glitter

taken from any corner store

But you’d better give up those sentimental possessions

so no one can stop us from being children

with our little girl dreams

for today we’ll never grow old

because we’ve never been women

only girls

And girls can never die

because you only die when you let yourself

And we can’t let ourselves die

because we’re too busy staying alive

And it won’t be so bad forever

That’s what you wanted me to tell you

And maybe that’s true

But we’ll never be alive like we are now

Never again will we be so legendary

because never again will we be so close to extinction

Maybe someday I’ll stop selling plasma

someday you’ll stop pawning off your jewelry

and someday we’ll stop begging

then we’ll have money

Then we’ll be regular

But I can’t bear thinking about being regular

because I want to have something now

I need to have something now

because our lives are a novel

and its picaresque chapter is far from over

And how do I keep turning these pages?

I have you.

Mania He-Hell

the doors open

i see a woman

i enter the elevator

i know she has your name

but i don’t know her face

i don’t know its structure

i don’t know those scars

i just know that i don’t remember last night

i don’t know what i’ve done

the psychosis has won

the doors shut

i DEVOUR.

About the Author:

Judy Valentino (she/her/hers) is a 21-year-old writer, actress, musician, podcaster, and director from New Jersey who is now based out of Portland, Oregon, where she writes about living on the margins, inspired by her experiences dwelling all across the United States. When she’s not writing or reading, she can be found watching old B-movies, messing around with obscure technology, and performing her poetry at coffee shops. Her fiction has been previously published in the Seraphic Review.