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      July 18, 2024Bigger Than UsEmily Walker

      Image: “Terry’s Keys” by Kim Beckham. “Bigger Than Us” was written by Emily Walker for Rattle’s Ekphrastic Challenge, June 2024, and selected as the Artist’s Choice.
      we ran out shrieking
      leaving our mark as
      footprints in the sand
      only stopping to
      plant our keys on the fence
      like a flag on the moon
      terry, her short hair,
      her red face,
      said we owned the beach
      and we could’ve
      but the black-backed gulls
      who mimicked our screeches,
      they were thieves
      the dunes were our country
      the waves, our closest friends
      the sun burnt us in continents
      drawing maps on our backs and
      painting our hair with streaks
      of light, of day, of promise.
      stay forever, we swore and
      locked our pinkies till they bled
       

      from Ekphrastic Challenge

      Comment from the artist, Kim Beckham

      “‘We ran out shrieking.’ I really like that the poet created characters and a world to fit the scene. They truly captured all of the senses in the images, sounds, and heat of Terry’s day at the beach. It felt really tight with the perfect image to punctuate the ending. Pinky swear!”

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