Mason Elise Patterson
Late Night Whispers
Cover Art: Sol LeWitt, Plate (folio 44) from Six Geometric Figures and All Their Combinations, Volume I. 1980. Etching from an illustrated book. MOMA.
Late Night Whispers
When you were here, the world
was easy, filled with Bible stories and childhood prayers which nestled into the fabric of my skin. Weaving together images of your congregation, your travels with Grandma to save those you deemed lost. You made the world simple. I longed to explore it with you and live in the life of your stories. Your dreams for my life haunt me. They whisper when I skip church. They scorn my happiness and shuddered at my first kiss. It’s strange how easy it is to ignore your whispers when I’m surrounded by noise. I have found a world outside of your stories. I have created my own. Now I am haunted knowing there is too much world between us. |
Mason Elise Patterson is a senior English student at the University of Arkansas at Fort Smith. She has interned with the Periodical Poetry Index, indexing and cataloging poetry featured in the eighteenth- century literary periodicals. She has presented her work and writing at several universities across the country. After her graduation in the May of 2020, Mason plans to continue her education in graduate school, studying Victorian literature and gender studies.