Fig. 1
Fig. 5¹
mouth closed sees the shape of pain
thumbnail blanched into a crescent moon
closely the grayness of things and their shapes
still inside the magnet
does it hurt does it light up matter flow
I would like to see my brain but I don’t need to know why
machine more credible than you or I who have only mouths
¹ The upside down title is taken from this article.
Alex Allen’s work is informed by her lived experience with chronic illness. She is interested in the narrative structures surrounding illness and disability. Her poetry dwells in the constant change of a relational world. You can read more of her work in Glass Buffalo.