Midwestern Thunderstorm by Emma Deimling

My soul is the shape of a

Midwestern thunderstorm in spring

(Purpled black and orange-tinged gray)

Bruises on too pale skin, tangerines unpeeled,

Broken images of a childhood memory, yellowed

Lightning slicing, tied together with a

String, unraveling—

Every so often there comes a Wednesday

(April showers no longer bring May flowers)

When hearing colors and tasting sound is

Too loud. Falling for boy after girl and

Girl after boy, one hill at a time,

Slowly at first, until everything comes tumbling down,

Always ending up at the bottom

(With swollen faces and broken hearts.)

(With swollen hearts and broken faces.)

---

Emma Deimling currently works as a writing tutor at the Ohio State University’s writing center. She has been published in numerous magazines, the most recent being in With Confetti. She lives in Columbus, Ohio. You can find her on Twitter @EmmaDeimling.