The Poetry Stash: 25Feb2024

Bay Poem from Berkeley by Sandra Cisneros

Today’s poem is “Bay Poem from Berkeley” by Sandra Cisneros from the collection Loose Woman. The book is available for purchase here.

Bay Poem from Berkeley by Sandra Cisneros

Mornings I still
reach for you before
opening my eyes.

An antique habit from
last summer when we pulled
each other into the heat of groin
and belly, slept with an arm
around the other.

The Texas sun was like that.
Like a body asleep beside you.

But when I open my eyes
to the flannel and down,
mist at the window and blue
light from the bay, I remember
where I am.

		This weight
on the other side of the bed
is only books, not you. What
I said I loved more than you.
True.

Though these mornings
I wish books loved back.

Prompts:

1.	Begin with “Mornings I still…”
2.	Begin with “This weight…”
3.	Draft a poem exploring the end of a relationship (romantic, friendship, work).
4.	Draft an erotic poem.
5.	Write a love letter to a favorite book or a favorite activity or object.

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