Lorrie Ness

She Spoke with Urgency

we construct our histories         with words
vaguely wet upwellings          of the throat
if each voice                  is a maker’s mark
hers was the sound        of chestnuts steaming
meat hissing          inside their shells

she asked to talk           so that I would listen
pressing my ear             over a tender seam
released her pressure                 left my lobe
scalding pink              she told me what’s swallowed
no longer burns                   inside the belly

language is unskinned           once it is spoken
leaving the mouth               raw and blistered
she closed her lids                   shutting off their valves
to give her voice full volume         fearing her eyes
would syphon away                  stories meant for her lips

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Lorrie Ness is an emerging poet working in Virginia. Her work can be found at Palette Poetry, THRUSH Poetry Journal, Typishly and various other journals. In 2019 she was nominated for a Best of the Net Award by Sky Island Journal.