Featured Poet ~ Fall/Winter 2018
Bekah Steimel is a 37-year-old writer living in St. Louis whose poems have been published globally. Her pastimes include flirting, drinking whiskey and making people unconformable. Find her recent work in literary magazines such as Oddball, FIVE:2:ONE and Crab Fat. Visit www.bekahsteimel.com and follow her on Twitter and Instagram @BekahSteimel.
I keep pecking at the eggshell of this world
every dose
is a down-payment on death
even an avalanche begins with a flurry
with accumulation
I’m killing myself with my own friendly fire
one white bullet at a time
I have no desire to be a cautionary tale
a narrative
of excess and extinction
but the itchy sweater of sobriety
has never fit well
and always unravels
at the most inconvenient times
First appeared in Oddball Magazine, 2015
Backfired
I was baptized in gasoline
and taught to play with matches
I was told everybody burns
Even so
Burn in silence
No show and tell
it is impolite to speak of the flames
it is improper to reveal the scars
But the arsonists miscalculated
when they lit me
because instead of burning me
into defenseless ash
they actually ignited my voice
First appeared in The Bitchin’ Kitsch, 2016
~ To view more from Bekah pick up a copy of the current issue, Fall/Winter 2018