Poetry books stacked on the sofa
Poetry on the Sofa
Poems by Joannie Kervran Stangeland

The First End of the World


After All Is Said

When catastrophe flew out,
a part of her left with it,
one thin thread unraveling, lifting
into turmoil, then gone.

She tried to placate the empty place,
to sate the loss with mint and honey, wine and sex,
but nothing has filled that want.
Now she lives with the tear

in her heart, missing the single art
she needs to stitch herself whole.