for Librada
Diabetes, that brat, that bruja
Sends my abuela to heaven in portions
Skimming a little life off the top when no one is looking
Think finger, think frosting
In the photo she looks just like my mother
Because she is
Because long term
That’s how our little lives fight back
There's a bottle of perfume that we pass among ourselves
The ones that look like her because she looked like us first
Worth more than all the frosting in the world
A fragrance that reaches into the body and lights a candle
In some of my darker corners
Toujours Moi costs twenty-three dollars online
And yet, sets off silent fireworks behind my closed eyes
Even as I remember, I forget
These bodies can do beautiful
These bodies can do treacherous
In the photo she is holding me
Because I am unable to stand on my own
Later, we will trade places
And if not her body,
I will hold this perfume, which is to say
We are holding each other now
The Isaac Escobar in question is a poet/musician from Elgin, IL who holds a BA in creative writing from Columbia College in Chicago. Other things he has, at times, sweetly held? His cat (Hemmy), small beach stones, mugs of hot coffee, friendly hands, and books just to name a few. He hopes you find his poems equally sweet to hold.
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