The top

Mary Kane

Mary Kane


Today I am on top of the world, I said
then looked down
already feeling the drop
in my belly.

I wanted
finally
the middle
ground:
air neither thin nor suffocating
rocks not sharp or grand.
Just my hair falling down ,
the center of my back
wind twirling it
whenever it wants.

I walked and walked
letting my toes rub the sides of my sandals
until red and bothered
and still said hello in a most ordinary way
to every person.

I did not want the things
I have chased: secret tunnels,
frozen peaks, permission.

The Top was accepted as part of the MSU Library Short Edition call for work on the theme of “recovery,” in coordination with the MSU Broad Art Museum's exhibit of Beverly Fishman's art, also called Recovery.

Mary Christine Kane lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota where she works in marketing and is a volunteer for the arts, parks and animal rescue. She earned an MFA from Hamline University in Saint Paul, Minnesota. Her poetry has appeared in numerous journals and anthologies including Bluestem; The Buffalo Anthology, Right Here, Right Now; Ponder Review and others. Her poetry chapbook, Between the stars where you are lost, was published in 2019 by Finishing Line Press. Mary can be found online at marychristinekane.com.

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