Day 19, Poet 19: Jalayna Carter

Photo by Nicole Moses

Sabbatical

Keep
doing the same things
thinking something will change.

Keep
doing the work
dumping out expectations
that never rise
full and hot.

Keep
rubbing oil
where it hurts
drinking vinegar
waiting to be cleansed

Stop
allowing live things
down there.


Start
living
from somewhere else.

Previously published by Fig Root Press.


Seattle transplant, Jalayna Carter, is an emerging storyteller from St. Louis, MO. Her work is born of the tradition set by the Black Arts Movement through the lens of Poetry of Witness. It is just as much the result of a love of science-fiction and the re-imagining of personal history. She studied literature and journalism in the Midwest and from there developed an interest in interdisciplinary media. A 2018 Jack Straw Writer's Program fellow, she explores Immersive Poetry focusing on sensory stimulation through technology. She’s had pieces published by Third Point Press, Reality Beach, Puerto Del Sol and 2Leaf Press in the Anthology, Black Lives Have Always Mattered. You can find her on IG (@just.jalayna) and Twitter (@just_jalayna) talking about her plant babies. You can follow more of her work at www.JalaynaCarter.com.