I like to fall sometimes.
I like to see the blood.
When it flows from
my pores into rivers,
dams, and streams-
like velvet currents of rage
and sorrow.
I am open like a wound,
raw and tender.
Unreached dreams
form into pools.
Shame tugs at
the waist. When it
overcomes me, a
flower budding in
the wind.
Each petal pulled
one by one,
then released.
In the bathtub, I’ll drown
before someone comes.
And I’ll sing bubbles
of fury and Hades,
when it flows from
my pores into rivers,
dams, and streams-
like velvet currents of rage
and sorrow,
for all to see.
—-
Denise Nichole Andrews is a rebel with a cause. Her work explores the intersections of race, sexuality, spirituality, and gender. Her identity as a bisexual, Blaxican woman is a source of empowerment and strength. She advocates for the youth and populations affected by mental illness. Her poetry, photography, and essays are a revolutionary proclamation of love, healing, and survival.
VAGABOND CITY 