January Revisited

Debbie Zimolong

we walked into town and
what we spoke of was
longing and where it ends.
omniscient january
peppermint winter
milky coffee air.
it seemed
of note
that day:
new years must be beginnings.
it seemed ordinary, too –
ice on asphalt and
expired custard biscuits

now april’s come and
my tongue
tastes sugar
my heart
grows arms, learns desire, reaches out
to touch snow

close your eyes and dream of –
oh, but you already know how this poem will go.

when spring begins do we
divide up our love
three equal parts, add one on top for good measure, it comes apart
so wonderfully, gelatinous enough, now small
enough to stuff in overweight suitcases –

or
do the new faces around our dining room table
find it just
there
stuck to the kitchen counter
down the sink you never cleaned
friendship cleared away like
old furniture
traces in polyester carpets
indefinitely

I sit down and transcribe the cadence of your laughs
rise
fall
out
in - in - in

no longer surrounded by love I find it has entered me

---

Debbie Zimolong
Debbie Zimolong is a 27-year-old writer currently residing in Germany whose life has been revolving around words and languages for as long as she can remember: after getting her M.A. in English Studies, she has been working as a translator while her free time is spent reading, writing, and exploring creativity in any way she can. She loves to toe the line between poetry and prose and enjoys writing about all different iterations of love, about being queer, about nostalgia and remembrance and home.