The Paddock Review

…..

Baptism at Jordan Lake

I made my way barefoot down a rocky path and did not stop walking when I reached the shore. The rising sun reflected scarlet off the water. It could have been a lake of fire. Nothing looked different when I came up–No charred earth, no paradise. The lake was amoebic and still. The empty two-lane caressed its curves. If she would come I’d bring her down to the banks. I would show her what it feels like to break through the surface not caring if it is water or flame. I would ask, do I seem different to you

now?

…..

This poem is from the chapbook Look: Love Letters (Finishing Line Press), and is available at https://www.finishinglinepress.com/product/look-love-letters-by-maxx-dempsey/

Look: Love Letters asks us to imagine the interception of the past and present, and how they fit together to create an internal portrait of a person.  The poems open a window to the mind of the author who is grappling with their own personal history and the echoes of their lineage. They are the culmination of the confusion of a curious child, and a penchant for obsession. The poems fit together like puzzle pieces, creating a landscape of the author’s internal journey through loss. Each short poem is a letter to someone or something that doesn’t exist anymore except in memory. They allow for meditation, both by author and reader. They are each a self-contained rumination nostalgic for a past fire that still somehow burns.