Guidelines



Submission Guidelines: Send 1-3 unpublished poems in the body of an email (NO ATTACHMENTS) to nvneditor[at]gmail.com. No simultaneous submissions. Use "Verse News Submission" as the subject line. Send a brief bio. No payment. Authors retain all rights after 1st-time appearance here. Scroll down the right sidebar for the fine print.

Thursday, April 01, 2021

EVER GIVEN

by Kat Frabotta


“Ever Given” by DaveRiver at Deviant Art.


She trudged on, steered towards Rotterdam
The captain’s son called him. Something pestering
The wind. He felt itchy. His grip tightened
He jerked the wooden wheel
Left. Left. How fucking far can you go.
Too far, it seems.
A simple, swift U-Turn will fix things
She had other plans.
Had since leaving Taiwan, but now he spurred her on.
Now it wasn’t just a magical dream of a looming, vast, powerless vessel
He had actively propelled her, set her off, equipped her with the tools needed
To make her mark.
Ever Given,
For decades, Passing various goods to every spot she’s been told
Humans have not moved her.
People shoot Asians, step on the necks of black men,
Buy plastic to put on top of plastic
As the world burns.
Incredulous, she did what she could
With her mass and the blessing of propulsion
She burrowed deep.
She takes to Egypt, ignoring the cries of the Captain
Slowly entrenches herself into the sand of the canal.
And now she sits.
She sits, she blocks. She has no intention of budging.
Why should she?
We don’t budge.
And maybe we need to get stuck for a while right now, she thinks,
Shutting her eyes and making herself comfortable.


Kat Frabotta is a 29 year-old living in New York City. She is currently an advertising student and aspiring creative. In her freetime, she loves cuddling with her orange cat and talking to friends over a bowl of penne alla vodka.