who secretly thrilled to Ursula
who shared her envy
of that underwater voice
and wanted nothing more
than to throat it. To swallow.
To use it however we liked. We,
the ones who tried to belt
some mournful song but heard just
screechy child warbles, nothing
sultry. Who compensated with
soulful looks in the mirror
before we knew what soulful looks
even were. Who scorned the princess-
crazed girls, their saturated pinks.
Who knew our fear of the villain
wasn’t fear, but longing.
Michele Lent Hirsch is a journalist, editor, and poet. Her poetry has appeared in Rattle, Bellevue Literary Review, Canary, and Spillway, and her non-fiction in The Atlantic, Psychology Today, Women Under Siege, and Smithsonian Magazine, where she is a regular online contributor. She lives and works in New York.
ROOM 47.4 FULL CIRCLE
Step back with Room into the past, to parents, to childhood homes, and to people once known and loved; dig into themes of grief and healing; and ultimately explore what it means to come full circle in literature.
ROOM 47.3 BODIES
Join Room in a deep dive on the body: touch and isolation, trans and queer embodiment, fat liberation, chronic illness and disability, brutality, sensuality, and other meditations on the bones and muscles you inhabit every day.
Seeking members who love literature, events, merchandise, and supporting marginalized creators.
Full Circle | 47.4
$10.00 – $20.00
Bodies | 47.3
$15.00 – $25.00
Seedpod | 47.2
$12.00 – $25.00
Utopia | 47.1
$12.00 – $25.00
Sponsor a Contributor
$250.00
Sponsor a Writer
$100.00
Sponsor a Poet
$50.00
Fever Dream | 46.4
$12.00 – $25.00
Fever Dream Tote Bag — Limited Edition
Ghosts | 46.3
$12.00 – $25.00