(after Henry Darger’s collection, as told by Olivia Laing)
amazing how
bits of string
connect the days
darn up the weak spots
entertain the eye
flower in a dark room
gutter rescued
handled carefully
imagine being threaded through a city
just as you were falling apart
knots to puzzle over at night
lines crossing lines, patterning
myriad layers appearing as
nesting material for dreams
obsessive collecting
pacifies the danger
quiets the bad thoughts
reliable old twine
sewing songs of delight
tools of repair in hand
until you’ve really loved an object
vowed to protect it
whole worlds remain unseen
xenial, precious string
yoked to a kind of survival
zippering the broken heart
Emily J. Schnipper (she/her) sells nature books to the people of Portland when she is not reading, writing, or acting as hype person for the California Condor. A graduate of the Independent Publishing Resource Center’s Portfolio Program in Poetry, she is currently working on a MFA at Pacific Northwest College of Art. Emily is the creator of the zine Adventures in Unemployment and has been published in Ghost Print, Minto Press, and Papeachu Review. Her chapbook, Bother, focuses on themes of relationship, chronic illness, and the environment.