ThreebyMcArtor

 

Victoria McArtor

THREE ORANGES IN THE MORNING

but last night
there were four

until he muddled the body of the orange                                                                                                                                             with a reasonable rye

we thought what we afforded each other                                                                                                                                             was more than sensory
and less than waste

until he dropped the rind
down the disposal

letting the aroma press out of skin                                                                                                                                                       until the syrup of memory

was already making promises
to adhere

as if we could compel the atmosphere                                                                                                                                                       to be a little more inhabitable

as if we could change
our lives in an instant
for us
I mean

 

RX

if forgotten
   coconut water and
   her stomach facing up

if remembered
   picture a landscape
   you’ve never seen

if surge
   wish you had
   less to loose

if splurge
   rid yourself of what
   winter dulls

if starving
   smells of citrus in the afternoon                                                                                                                                                                    coming through

if your securing the anchor                                                                                                                                                                              don’t

if gone
    let’s keep going

 

THE SEVENTH YEAR

How did the spider                                                                                                                                                                           conceive of
the thread inside her head—
How can I
after tucking
so deeply inside                                                                                                                                                                                        your web—

 

 

Victoria McArtor holds an MFA from Oklahoma State University; is a former adjunct professor for the University of Tulsa; works for a luxury residential mortgage team; and is co-founder of a poetry and collaborative arts nonprofit, MUSED. Her previously published poetry and prose can be binged at victoriamcartor.com.