Questions for a Waxing Crescent – Jessica Beyer

1

Is sunrise an egg breaking upside down? Is there a light on in

the abandoned house? Is the sea quieter on the darkest

nights? Was the world destroyed in water, or born in it?

2

Is the hill behind your house getting further from the river? Is

snow lotus from China or Tibet? Is kissing at all like catching

snowflakes? Is kissing a snowman a kind of conquest? Is it

cheating to love yourself just a little more than each other?

3

Is the bridge groaning under the train? Is oxygen just another

tether? Is she dressed in bracelets or sutures? Is your thumb

charged against her teeth? Is she a ribbon through your

mouth? What sound does the earth make after quaking?

4

Is it true the wallpaper in this house is holding up the walls?

Is dust forty generations of skin? Is it easier to sleep with

someone else in your bed? Is the glimmer skipping off the

frozen lake enough to save us? Can I fall asleep believing

that’s a yes?

Jessica Beyer is a writer and educator from Baltimore and has studied at NYU and Emory University. Her poems have appeared in Muse/A, The Adroit Journal, decomP, and elsewhere. You can find her waterskiing, SCUBA diving, and giving in to wanderlust whenever possible, but also online at jessicabeyer.com and @JessicaHBeyer.