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      December 25, 2021DIY ProjectAakriti Karun

      stage i.
      there is a word for looking
      into the mirror and not seeing
      yourself—tell myself this
      daily.
      stage ii.
      he pretends not to see
      me when he takes out my gift. closing his eyes
      with his hands, asks darling, where
      are you? where is my sweetheart? I don’t see
      her, no I don’t. shake my head then say I’m here and he peeks
      through his fingers, forehead wrinkling, asks and who are you now?
      I don’t know you, no I don’t. who are you?
      stage iii.
      forget old diseases & gather
      new ones. stomach aches
      unexpectedly. forgotten
      pain whips into my age
      old bones. time’s contrived
      as the flesh: in the end,
      must remember everything
      is something made. must be someone
      to do the making. watch my hurried breath
      steal away the candles and leave us
      gasping.
      stage iv.
      the final canvas is nameless. slaughter
      the s so we can steal a little
      happiness for ourselves. take out
      the i & leave
      it unsigned so it will wander
      without a mother like everything else
      I love.

      from 2021 RYPA

      Aakriti Karun (age 15)

      Why do you like to write poetry?

      “Without poetry, I’d waste language. We’re lazy more often than not. We speak and write just to acknowledge our mutual acceptance of linguistic and cultural grammar—rather than do the hard work of actual communication. I’m frustrated by how language is used to validate our conformity; how the minute I name an experience, it becomes shared property. How can I put something into words and still let it be mine? What if grammar was just another cliché? What if I didn’t trust punctuation rules, dictionary definitions, sentence syntax? Poetry gives you permission to not trust. The poem is unnaming, unlanguage, mine—how could I resist?”

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