The Carpathians - University of British Columbia
The Carpathians - University of British Columbia
The Carpathians - University of British Columbia
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A n n e Le D r e s s a y<br />
In my next life<br />
I have stumbled four times<br />
over the same step today.<br />
I am the kind <strong>of</strong> person who<br />
cannot climb stairs without<br />
thinking about climbing stairs.<br />
In my next life, I will be<br />
a dancer. To make up for<br />
the undirected hunger in<br />
the shape <strong>of</strong> my bones —<br />
the long hungry bones and the<br />
flat incapable weight that<br />
hamper me now. To make up<br />
for the distrust <strong>of</strong> space<br />
and <strong>of</strong> my own perceptions.<br />
In my next life, I will be<br />
the same size in my mind<br />
as in the world. I will know<br />
without thinking<br />
how much space I take up,<br />
how far to lift my foot<br />
to the next step.<br />
In my next life, I will flow,<br />
trusting the air and the earth<br />
and my own feet. I will<br />
write poems with my body,<br />
poems so fine and ephemeral<br />
they will flow into smoke<br />
and leave an ache<br />
like hunger in people's minds.<br />
I will not stumble, I will not<br />
stumble<br />
over the top step.