The isolation of the organ bench. Three times
lucky. Pink plastic My
Little Pony hair. Tangles. Pull. Curly
and wrong. Curling iron burn
on cheek. Dry lips. Sunburnt, chapped lips.
The number eight. The perfect drawing
of a figure eight. Sisters and times tables. Hard plastic
secondhand kitchens. Hard plastic secondhand houses.
Dirt. Dirt under long fingernails. Peeling hang nails.
Tooth rot. Golden tooth. Throw up in the minivan.
The whole world on the edge of the highway. The waterpark
by the gas station next to Wendyβs. Chicken nuggets.
Twin red braids that canβt stay down. The word love. The word
love
on sisters' lips turning into a church. Love at Church. Hate at Church.
Googling mental illness; parental blocks due to nudity.
The statue of David. The birth of Venus. Jesus on the cross.
The leaf over Adam and Eveβs groins. The word groin.
Lions: problematic power. The desire to be a lion.
Sadie Burch π
Hives
There are no words in the English language β Phoebe Bridgers
Author Reading
About the Author
Sadie Burch (she / her) is originally from Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Sadie is the 2023 winner of the Charles Crupi Memorial prize, and has been published in The Albion Review, Exist Otherwise, and The Interlochen Review. Sadie is an alumnus of Interlochen Arts Academy and is currently studying at Bennington College, Vermont.