Artwork by Olive Hannigan
i drew twin stars on my ring finger
with a marker that was not meant to–
a bit scratchy, a bit soothing
a temporary tattoo dim on skin
echoing stars i’ve tilted my head
to stare at too many times–
nestled amongst the moon
yearning bright, pulling tides
which crash through walls
i've built up too many times–
pruning skin, washing grime,
capturing breath
like how i captured the stars
drowning in the night sky–
brought them into orbit
with thin scratchy markers
in hopes they would remind me of
my place in the universe–
ever floating, ever burning
trapped within the confines of the infinite sky
Ven Mubarak is a senior Creative Writing major and a Theater Arts minor. They are forever yearning for something out of reach and bide their time writing poetry, fiction, and musings.