Jill Khoury
Summer 2024 | Poetry
Two Poems
accident prone (some curses i know)
blow the intro when
bruise my shins when
split my lip when
bleed my nose when
cut my knees when
turn my ankle when
tear my ligament when
detach my vitreous when
ruin christmas when
scar my arm when
burn my face when
gray my tooth when
knot my forehead when
scrape my elbows when
lacerate my ego when
light my hair on fire when
get metal in my eye when
pull off my fingernail when
make an armor of my fascia when
make a wound like a little mouth when
i let you see me
the new year
can’t find my slippers
bed flipped upside down and backwards
my feed shrieks BE RESOLUTE
mirror implies with her eyebrows
i should at least take stock—
some synapses fire confetti and pop-rocks
will i make it through the winter i ask
the Universe Box (without becoming
suicidal) // i clear the counter of cups
this one a garish gift from last year
it’s time to feed the cats it’s time to
take out the trash but i can’t find
my slippers
or go outside
in bare feet
Jill Khoury (she/her) is a disabled poet and a Western Pennsylvania Writing Project fellow. She has taught poetry in high school, university, and enrichment settings. She holds an MFA from The Ohio State University and edits Rogue Agent, a journal of embodied poetry and art. Her poems have appeared in numerous venues, including Copper Nickel, Bone Bouquet, Dream Pop, CALYX, and The Poetry Foundation’s Poem-A-Day. Winner of the Gatewood Prize, her second full-length collection earthwork is available from Switchback Books. Connect with her at jillkhoury.com.