Issue 2.2
Summer 2022
Daniel Stevenson
Reflection
The poems were written as a certain reckoning with the state of the world, or more meaningfully, my immediate and natural surroundings. I'd love to see readers read these poems with all the attention of an afternoon walk, picking up on congruence and the lack of it, but still with the intent of joy through movement. I read many books at a time, for better or worse, but a few that come to mind during the writing of these poems are The Road by Cormac McCarthy, The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien, and Indian Summer Recycling by Nathan Hauke.
Birdsong
Sunburnt leaves in heat
tendrils droop and crisp
it’s like I need the pressure of [it]
to get a full night’s sleep
to have anything to write about
sing into my mouth
trees braided and clothed
muffled and staked low
I make myself sit on the porch and
pick apart birdsongs
I get all the words wrong
every melody is grief
a single spinning leaf
Bathing in the scene
the weight of everything
it’s a practice to be free
I awake to
a butterfly above palm fronds
a squirrel exchange in the juniper
quick embrace of the breeze
a woman whistling on the street
Daniel Stevenson is a writer and musician in Durham, NC. His writing focuses on the environmental and seasonal influence on human experience. He has a B.A. in English from Appalachian State University, and his writing has appeared on The Inertia, Chapel Hill Magazine, as well as in the lyrics of his musical project, Unaka Prong. His poetry has been published in magazines such as Sunday Night Bombers and Pollen.
Daniel's Music Recommendations
Soundkeeper by Gunn-Truscinski Duo
Becalmyounglovers by Bowerbirds
Blind Date Party by Bill Callahan & Bonnie “Prince” Billy