Category: 2023 Edition

I Don’t Believe in Subtlety

by Josseline Cruz Garcia


Josseline Cruz Garcia is an artist based in NYC. As a queer, latinx woman with depression & PTSD she faced many difficulties in her life that she learned to overcome through art. Growing up she felt that the media or education made available to her often did not reflect her struggles or issues. She has since then met many others who have felt the same lack of representation in media and now plans on creating stories and media that resonate with other marginalized individuals. She goes by the handle Geleekinder online.


 

Some Questions for Matthew Pacuruco

How did you begin this piece? Did the poem take a sudden turn that even you didn’t expect while writing?

I began this piece during the early beginnings of the pandemic. Being enclosed and tightened in my room, I have felt depressed and started becoming quieter and overwhelmed with everything around me. In which, inspired my poem “Cold Show” to be more focused on mental illness or any of its kind itself. As for the poem, it didn’t take a sudden turn in any way as it is how I had expected it to be. The spike in mental illness and the media as society, I brought these two and played around with them until I found a profound ending in my poem.

What made you think of this specific office type setting?

To be honest, I just popped in my head to have an office building as the main setting. To be fair, I have thought about enclosed settings while thinking about it. But, an office building, in my own interpretation, represents an isolated closure to yourself to think and imagine possibilities that you could’ve done before you got in here in the first place While depression and anxiety sparks overtime for sitting and slouching most of the time, I feel like an office building is also to reflect and, despite our low self esteem, along the way we’ll find a hint of satisfaction in our work lives.


Read Matthew’s poem “Cold Show.”


 

Cold Show

by Matthew Pacuruco

[CW // suicide]

 

Film. Broadcast. Edit.
Work is almost done. I slouch when it’s already dawn.
I can feel his presence from here. Noises from his footsteps make me want to look over there.
A perfect evening to sit on the bench while it snows. Nature’s beauty is on display.
Memorizing every snowflake.

I am in a bubble.
Around my bubble is snow
And I am happy.
For it’s terrorizing him.

Questions. Questions. Questions.
Answers are invalid. I am freed.
Down those busy streets. Shivering teeth of mine. Filled with excitement.
I am flying on top of those busy streets.

My head turns left.
It’s automatic.

Red. Blue. Red. Blue.
Under me are those lights above me.
I Lose control.
I’m Losing the loss of this world.

Everyone now looks over here.
As I am losing blood.

My head turns right.
It’s tragic.

Ambulance and cops around me.
Near and cluttered around my satire.
I look up at the glass window I shattered.
And then realized on the big screen,

“This just in! LIVE! A citizen jumps out of an office building! Reports about the citizen suffering from a severe mental episode. More updates soon, after these messages…”


Check out our questions for Matthew Pacuruco.


Matthew Pacuruco is a recent LaGuardia student pursuing an associate’s degree in Creative Writing. He wishes to become a writer in the future to share his stories with the public. Coming from an Ecuadorian-descent background, born in the borough of Queens, NY, he ignites pride and dignity to keep and share his experiences living in a Latin family/community. He writes various types of writing such as short stories, poetry, fiction, essays, autobiography, etc. He welcomes you to the vision of his world, and with dear consideration, he hopes you will connect to it as well, in any way possible.


Image credit: “Stadtbaß,” Kai C. Schwarzer. Flickr CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.

Thrift Shop

by Maria Clara


Some questions we had for the artist…

What is the inspiration behind your art?

The inspiration behind my art is fear.
Fear prevents us from doing stuff that we enjoy, just because we might not be successful or might not even earn money by doing so. So every time I look at a finished artwork I remind myself that If i wasn’t brave enough to go for it, my artwork would never have been made.

What mediums did you use to make this piece?

In “Thrift Shop” the assignment was to experiment with a lot of texture and what better way than fabric and clothes? The material for this art piece is acrylic paint over canvas, granulated acrylic medium, and gloss medium.


Maria C. Perez is a Venezuelan artist who moved to New York four years ago looking for better opportunities. She works with different mediums and subjects to experiment with the different styles an artist can have.


 

Senses Of Grief

by Melony Hodge

Butterflies, corner eyes, reflections on dark screens.
Quick looks,
Red, red, red, red, red, and red again.
Mickey Mouse and vivid dreams.

Loud noises, unexplained.
Cackling laughs, mischievous baby girl.
So many songs from our past.
Thunder claps, theme songs.
Baby-girl knowing words none of us taught her.

Strong scents of cigarettes, weed, and your cologne.
I close my eyes, breathe in deep,
Knowing when I return to sight, you’ll still be gone.

Alone in tears, lost in my grief,
A firm hand on my shoulder,
Company while I weep.

Don’t cry Melon
I hear you say.
I’m here Melon
I know J, I can sense you all the time, it’s just not the same.

Your absence is so heavy.
My grief, it runs so deep.
Without my brother, my best friend,
I’m left
Forever
Incomplete.


 Melony Hodge is a full time mom and wife. She loves to read, write, and learn. She spends her time working on her writing and teaching her toddler daughter sign lauguage while also preparing her for pre-school. she has a creative soul that is expressed through sewing and other craft hobbies. family gatherings are her favorite events to attend. she hopes to one day be a published author of poetry and a memoir as well as other genres. she hopes that her writings will one day inspire someone like the many characters and books she has read have inspired her throughout her life.


Image Credit : Pop H  “coeur brisé / Broken heart,” Flickr, CC BY-ND 2.0. 

Sage

by Maria Clara


Maria C. Perez is a Venezuelan artist who moved to New York four years ago looking for better opportunities. She works with different mediums and subjects to experiment with the different styles an artist can have.


 

I Pledge Allegiance

by Dom Glover

[after Danez Smith]

 

You remember how
in school they used to make us recite the Pledge of Allegiance?
Each morning our young undeveloped overstimulated selves
would be giddier than a motherfucker to announce our undying devotion
to a country that couldn’t give a fuck less about people that look like me
But what if I made a more properly fitting rendition?
One that more accurately describes what I call home
It would go a little something like this

I pledge allegiance
To those working two jobs to only barely afford that month’s rent
To those who sacrifice food in their belly to be able to put it on the table
To those too tired to function yet find the strength to do it anyway
To those who make instead of break

I pledge allegiance
To the ones fighting invisible battles
To the ones who feel they’re forced to live in the shadows
To the anxiety and ADHD gone undiagnosed
To those who feel like closure is nowhere close

And I pledge allegiance
To those who sit in remedial classes, dreams of Howard undeterred
To those who would be eye-level with Yao Ming if they stand on their student loan money
To those who use education to avoid being another statistic

I also pledge allegiance
To the aspiring rappers only getting 27 plays per song on Soundcloud
To the drivers blaring bachata music out of their cars so loudly
it would make Jesus bust a move
To the congregations of hookah smokers and dice rollers right outside of a barbershop
And, yes,
to the $20 shape-ups that’ll have a brother feeling like Michael B. Jordan for the next 2 weeks

I, of course, have to pledge allegiance
To the single mothers
The fathers that actually do stick around
The young child watching LeBron drop 30
A gleam in his eye, inspired to reach for the sky

I pledge allegiance
To the basketball courts with conspicuously missing nets
To the full-court 5-on-5’s like it’s game 7 of the Finals
To the Nike apparel adorning our outfit
To the “yo check up”, “AND ONEEEEEE” and eventually, the “ayo run that back bro”

And I pledge allegiance
to the box of fried chicken wings for $6
The bodega on every corner
The manager that roams around, licking his paw
And to the ock, ready to whip me up a baconegg&cheese on a roll, salt pepper ketchup

I pledge allegiance
To the Nike tech sweatsuits
To the Yankee fitteds and North Face windbreaker
An Ethika logo can be seen along the waistband
While a fresh pair of Jordan’s complete the fit

I even pledge allegiance
To A-Boogie, Lil TJay, the drill scene, and yes, Ice Spice
To 1520 Sedgwick Avenue, that’s my MoMA
To our dance moves, ayeeee ayeeeeee as we get sturdy
To the one and only Big Woo, you cannot say Pop and forget the Smoke

Now that is my nation
Indivisible
With liberty
We’re still trying to get justice for all


Listen to Dom Glover read his poem “I Pledge Allegiance” here:


Dom Glover was born and raised in the Bronx. Dom has always had an affinity for storytelling. One of his favorite pastimes during his formative years was drifting away into his notebook, writing fictional tales about cartoons and pro wrestling that served as exercise for his creative muscles. Eventually, he was able to channel that into making music, a career which is still only just beginning. Dom’s biggest strength is his vibrant personality and sense of humor which shines through in his creative works. It’s clear that he has a lot to say, and his mission is to spread his message worldwide. Follow him on Instagram @domglover.ny, on Twitter @DomGloverNY, or on TikTok @domglover.ny. 


Image Credit: “BLACK LIVES MATTER PROTEST, JUNE 2, 2020. (BROOKLYN, NEW YORK),” by Andrea Murguia Dajbura, The Lit 2022.

 

Remembering When

by Melony Hodge 

Home. It’s still there.
Even after all the other addresses
878, where it all began.

I remember When
Holiday traditions bled into growing up
When love and magic kept us fed
Cookouts, cream of wheat, pancakes
Thanksgiving turkeys, Christmas hams.
All made by grandparents’ hands.

Holding those hands
though our neighborhood blocks,
On our way to
P.A.L,
P.S 16,
Yogi Bear Stops.

When summer gathering turned into
Night time hang outs, lit by street lights
Grownups sitting on the stoop,
Watching us play.
These nights felt endless,
The air smelled like togetherness.

When long hallways led to bubble baths,
And night lights lit the way to family time,
Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune.
A window chair for Grandpa,
Wearing his signature hat and scarf.
And bedtime was ushered in with the sound
Of Grandma’s slippers down the hall.

When Christmas felt like magic,
With Our tall tree surrounded by gifts.
Excited to see which ones are for me,
New bike, Giga pets, tea party sets,
Casio keyboard and new clothes.

The record player spun
Unforgettable by Nate king Cole,
While my grandparents danced away,
Until I joined in standing on
Grandpa’s toes.
The Christmas lights like a warm hug,
My dog Coco asleep on the rug.

When every milestone was celebrated
With cheers.
And school work was taped to the wall
With pride.
When my family was a family,
When my childhood was alive.

I remember before
The sicknesses and the pain.
Before the world broke down our door
And everything became wet with rain.

The moments that shaped me into
Who I would become
The good memories I try to
Recreate for my daughter.

I remember it all.
Good, Bad and in-between.
It all lives inside me.
It’s what makes me,
Melony.


Melony Hodge is a full time mom and wife. She loves to read, write, and learn. She spends her time working on her writing and teaching her toddler daughter sign lauguage while also preparing her for pre-school. she has a creative soul that is expressed through sewing and other craft hobbies. Family gatherings are her favorite events to attend. she hopes to one day be a published author of poetry and a memoir as well as other genres. she hopes that her writings will one day inspire someone like the many characters and books she has read have inspired her throughout her life.


Images Credit: tux0racer, “IMG_0368,”  Flickr, CC BY 2.0.