Bones by Toni Young after Ella B. Winters | One Poem After

One Poem Only is a daily ritual: one poem, center stage, just for now.BonesToni Youngafter Ella B. Wintersit doesn’t take much to see through skin, through blood, through bones i’ve etched poems in each rib this cage can only hold so many stories see how this poem is stuck in the marrow see how this poem is caught in the hollow do i have to break these bones for you to read meMore from Toni Young ↓ @toniyoungpoems on Instagram@toniyoungpoems on SubstackAnd now for the poem this was written after. Ugly Bones by Ella B. WintersElla B. WintersBehind the dusty radiator, green splashed like blood spray in a B-film, from that time when you decided to paint our bedroom in the middle of the night,I keep my poems hidden in a puce manila file so unremarkable, it chameleons into the background, pink tongue unfurling to swallow my words into the shadowy crevice. Mostly, I don’t want you to see them, as though, in the starkness of the early hours, when our walls demand another change, they might reveal my ugly bones through the translucent skin. But sometimes, I forget they’re there, as well. Imagine leaving them behind when we move on. Who will I be when unsuspecting tenants pull me out word after word like a magician’s string of endless gauzy scarves? How will they piece my naked bones together? What colour will they paint the room?More from Ella B. Winters ↓@ella.b.winters on Instagram@ellabwinters on SubstackSupport + Stay Connected to OPOIf you’d like to support the show, Substack and Patreon members receive a copy of my book, For My Daughter, along with episodes from the audiobook.Feed yourself poetry every day.