Origins

we are a makeshift monument, curled up tiny like a floating rib

we are grandmothers’ voices, gurgling samovars

we never lie

we give purpose to silence

we know the meaning of war: eating raw potatoes straight form the ground

we are pyramids, structures beyond reason

we are ancient as the ocean, storm after storm we give no predictions

we are clairvoyant, knowing the end from the outset

we are untriangulated, no origins to speak of

we are all mothers repressed in potential

we are beauty, proportions checked and balanced

we are repurposing stories you tell yourself in eternal reoccurrence

we are a postlinear phase of growth

we start in the centre, making our way to the periphery and back again

we are loose ties, our allies know us intimately

we are a losing streak, untraceable, our records never show

we are getting milage out of creation myths

we are starting over in a new city, nobody knows our name

we come from elsewhere, aliens, we have no status

we are a perpetuated system of belief

we are resentment built over centuries giving purpose to silence

we are hindsight, useless premonitions of the future

We Are Lichen is out of print from The Blasted Tree Store

Razielle Aigen

Contributing Author

We Are Lichen by Razielle Aigen is a Blasted Tree original collection of poetry.

ISBN [Digital]: 978-1-987906-87-5

Cover Design by Kyle Flemmer