Linger

ERIN JAMIESON

Your palm is cool against mine 

in morning sunrise, our bodies 

silhouetted with crimson & blush

we have things to do: buy groceries

pay bills, fix a leaking roof but 

after decades my ring is loose

– before you notice, I pull away

ask if you want coffee, waffles 

you call my name, both familiar

& not: first the college student

then the waitress then an accountant

now wandering the empty room of 

a daughter who should’ve outlived me

a daughter whose scent still lingers

like cherry blossoms in spring 

That’s when I hear you in the kitchen

reaching for a spatula, aroma of 

cinnamon & apples frying 

just as they were the day 

they called to tell us 

You know where to find me:

an off brand frozen waffle

toasted golden, topped with

goopy apples 

I thought you could use

a break, you say. 

Orchard

I sink my teeth into the apple

you brought me- bruised 

skin, tender white flesh 

sweet, with putrid aroma

I taste crisp autumn air 

we drank last year

drinking cider, holding hands

you whispered then this 

would last, but as I bite

deeper I taste the carmelized

core- the rot that began then

that spread until we became

something neither of us knew

I toss the core, letting it roll

down a sloped field

until finally 

it rests 

Erin Jamieson’s writing has been published in over eighty literary magazines, including two Pushcart Prize nominations. Her poetry chapbook, Fairytales, was published by Bottlecap Press and her most recent chapbook, Remnants, came out in 2024.. Her debut novel (Sky of Ashes, Land of Dreams) came out November 2023.

Erin Jamieson’s writing has been published in over eighty literary magazines, including two Pushcart Prize nominations. Her poetry chapbook, Fairytales, was published by Bottlecap Press and her most recent chapbook, Remnants, came out in 2024.. Her debut novel (Sky of Ashes, Land of Dreams) came out November 2023.