perhappened mag
special issue: RUNNING
colitis as preparation
for the apocalypse
ALEXANDRA GRUNBERG
CW: chronic illness, blood
if the alien invasion began
with a ray gun of radiation
directed right at my gut
a flowering of pain
in an expellant bloom
i would probably assume
it was a “me” problem
there is too much cross
genre poetry these days
like, is this confessional
science fiction? is that
an alien or my reflection?
a distorted imagining
of myself or a metaphor?
i am exhausted by this
survival instinct, fear
of a white cell count
a balanced diet of bread
there is no real escape
just the black hole dive
into the pages of spec-fic
when the alien invasion ends
i will consider myself lucky
so unphased by blood
in such large quantities
the flowering red bloom
on my bathroom floor
is hardly reason to cry
with a ray gun of radiation
directed right at my gut
a flowering of pain
in an expellant bloom
i would probably assume
it was a “me” problem
there is too much cross
genre poetry these days
like, is this confessional
science fiction? is that
an alien or my reflection?
a distorted imagining
of myself or a metaphor?
i am exhausted by this
survival instinct, fear
of a white cell count
a balanced diet of bread
there is no real escape
just the black hole dive
into the pages of spec-fic
when the alien invasion ends
i will consider myself lucky
so unphased by blood
in such large quantities
the flowering red bloom
on my bathroom floor
is hardly reason to cry
Alexandra Grunberg is a Glasgow based poet, author, screenwriter, and artist. She enjoys obsessing over fictional supernatural villains, hillwalking to isolated locations, and towns that are more character than setting. Website: alexandragrunberg.weebly.com; Twitter: @alexgrunberg.