Olive Andrews Shares "I’m trying to tell you" From Three-Part Poetry Series

Artwork by Olivia Meek AKA Regularfantasy

I’ve been waking up earlier and earlier 

and boiling the kettle and forgetting the tea 

but the floor is warm and I have my lemon shampoo 

there was one day in the spring 

I poured the booze down the drain and put the bottle by the window in the light 

do you remember the night I was up sick 

and feeling very by myself and quiet 

afraid to text I thought you’d be sleeping 

and now you’re here 

and being alone doesn’t fill my brain like that 

as a child to relax I’d imagine 

taking each bone from my body and giving it a good scrub gently pushing it back into place 

but how impossible it is to do everything right 

creating space in my spine is a nice thought 

and really that’s all 

except there’s something right about trying to do better so I try to do better 

and boil the kettle 

Previously published in rock salt, baseline press 2020

Via Olive Andrews

Olive Andrews (they/them) is a poet living in Tiohtià:ke (Montréal). Instagram I Twitter

This is the third of three poems they have shared via Also Cool. Their work has been published in a number of magazines, including PRISM International and Plasma Dolphin. Their debut chapbook, rock salt, was published with Baseline press in 2020. They are currently interning at Canthius mag.

Artwork by Olivia Meek AKA Regularfantasy Instagram I Paintings I Design

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Olive Andrews Shares "orange glow" From Three-Part Poetry Series

Artwork by Olivia Meek AKA Regularfantasy

I spent all night in the bathroom pissing blood and crying

everything painted bright blue even the hardware

and the fan whirring

if I wanted I could give it all up

be hooked by a finger over my bottom teeth

and pulled liked a fish

in the morning now the wind whistles

I’m in the waiting room still bundled and

fantasizing about being picked up

and falling asleep in the car

what would I look like stripped of everyone I love

would the light through the curtain still glow orange

it doesn’t matter we’re all spun together in the washing machine

turning our whites pink

Previously published in rock salt, baseline press 2020

Via Olive Andrews

Olive Andrews (they/them) is a poet living in Tiohtià:ke (Montréal). Instagram I Twitter

This is the second of three poems they’ll be sharing via Also Cool. Olive’s work has been published in a number of magazines, including PRISM International and Plasma Dolphin. Their debut chapbook, rock salt, was published with Baseline press in 2020. They are currently interning at Canthius mag.

Artwork by Olivia Meek AKA Regularfantasy Instagram I Paintings I Design

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