Exposition
I survived a knife between my ribs, / strings cutting into sponge-berry flesh, / blooming rose wound around my wrists.
I’m a tender beast.
I survived a knife between my ribs,
strings cutting into sponge-berry flesh,
blooming rose wound around my wrists.
I’m building my biceps for self-defence,
but I’m rather tired now,
years of wrestling have bent my back.
I serve my love in a Kinder Egg:
milky-white chocolate, no edges,
pregnant with a secret in its womb—
ghost, warrior, princess, pet, alien.
I fight daily to turn my inside out.
Fresh air dries grazes quickest,
don’t put a plaster on them, my mum used to say.
Christina Hennemann is a poet and prose writer based in Ireland. Her debut poetry pamphlet was published by Sunday Mornings at the River in 2022. She won the Luain Press Poetry Competition, was shortlisted in the Anthology Poetry Award and longlisted in the National Poetry Competition. Her work appears in fifth wheel, Ink Sweat & Tears, Moria, Anti-Heroin Chic, National Poetry Month Canada, Livina, and elsewhere. She is currently working on a full-length poetry collection. www.christinahennemann.com
Christina Hennemann is a poet and prose writer based in Ireland. Her debut poetry pamphlet was published by Sunday Mornings at the River in 2022. She won the Luain Press Poetry Competition, was shortlisted in the Anthology Poetry Award and longlisted in the National Poetry Competition. Her work appears in fifth wheel, Ink Sweat & Tears, Moria, Anti-Heroin Chic, National Poetry Month Canada, Livina, and elsewhere. She is currently working on a full-length poetry collection. www.christinahennemann.com
