Beyond the Gate

By Alexandra Geneve

There is a
secret patch of soil
that sinks beneath
my feet.
I go there sometimes
when I want to feel
the descent
of pain outside
my own body.
I go there
and poke my toe
deep into the earthy
humus
and leave it there,
submerged,
until my snarled
and matted stomach
lets go for a moment,
and finds a brief
unfurling.

This poem is a public submission created for Red Room Poetry's New Shoots digital poetry anthology.