Out of Reach

by Holly Day

the hand comes down

and pushes me down

and reminds me

that the wings that keep

trying to break through my skin

are not

to be trusted, that wings

are not for me. I let the hand

tear out

the feathers, the sinew

the brave new appendages

that would allow me to fly away

let the hand carefully bind

my broken skin

my bloodied back

in bandages that keep

new feathers from sprouting,

new wings from unfurling

overnight.

* * * * *

Holly Day has taught writing classes at the Loft Literary Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota, since 2000. Her poetry has recently appeared in Big Muddy, The Cape Rock, New Ohio Review, and Gargoyle, and her published books include Walking Twin Cities, Music Theory for Dummies, Ugly Girl, and The Yellow Dot of a Daisy. She has been a featured presenter at Write On, Door County (WI), North Coast Redwoods Writers' Conference (CA), and the Spirit Lake Poetry Series (MN). Her newest poetry collections, A Perfect Day for Semaphore (Finishing Line Press) and I'm in a Place Where Reason Went Missing (Main Street Rag Publishing Co.) will be out late 2018.