about the author
Alyssa Morhardt-Goldstein is a seven-year transplant to NYC. She received her MFA in poetry from The New School, and her BS in classical voice and literature from Mannes Conservatory. Selected by Matthea Harvey as The New School’s 2012 Chapbook Contest winner in poetry for Quiet, from which this poem is excerpted, she does book
design for Patasola Press, and worked as the VP of design and program development for The Poetry Society of New York. She is the founding editor of myhorsemyhound press, which publishes poetry through embroidery and letterpress, and SOUND, a poetry magazine on contemporary musico-poetics. Visit her at
alyssamorhardtgoldstein.tumblr.com.
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Levee says let’s go down to the river
Alyssa Morhardt-Goldstein
Alternative content
Levee says let’s go down to the river
[the heronmoon, suggesting].
We want to say
stop telling us we are strong,
it’s making us weak.
With stillness we watch him settle the bottle in to cool.
His lips on it as our eyes—lewd
[our inability].