ode to the shopping mall in december
sleep in heavenly winter white noise, I wish I could / I’m caffeine awake / my body stillborn in the bustle of “what can I help you find today”
(can i help you find the rotten heart of it all / the ground floor of Macy’s / where I go on my breaks to disassociate / the back hallway intestines / behind doors marked “authorized personnel” / the string and tin can veins of it all / where no one sees me cry)
here, the endless Christmas Eve service / forgotten summer hymns forgotten again / altar of fake plants / benches like pews / empty like every day but Sunday
burst outside for long awaited cigarette break / the forever tinkling / sound of snowfall to an insect / ceaseless Salvation Army bell
Rebecca Kokitus is a part time resident of Media, PA just outside Philadelphia, and a part time resident of a small town in rural Schuylkill County, PA. She is an aspiring poet and is currently an undergraduate in the writing program at West Chester University of Pennsylvania. She has recent work in Rag Queen Periodical and Moonchild Magazine, and more work in other places. She tweets at @rxbxcca_anna.
Amethyst Review 