‘don’t forget to send me courage’
— Hannah Cohen
have you ever needed a
phone call? I am so sorry for leaving
Described by the poet as a “text message poem”, Corwin’s impactful and short piece travels in the wide space between what’s said, what’s written, and ultimately what we don’t see. Each line weaves into the other like a fairy tale about doctors and orchards and cherries, and the deceptively simple enjambments emphasize how sudden and final a text can be. I keep returning to the last two lines, in awe at how Corwin kicks me in the gut with the question of being “in the world, in the big wound?” We are all leaving in some shape or form, and this small poem revels in the briefness of everything.