Exploring Summer in Alicia Cook’s Poetry
Happy first day of summer...
While autumn is my favorite season, summer holds a nostalgic charm that travels through my four poetry collections: Stuff I’ve Been Feeling Lately, I Hope My Voice Doesn’t Skip, Sorry I Haven’t Texted You Back, and The Music Was Just Getting Good. Since it’s the first day of summer, I wanted to send over some excerpts :)
The Music Was Just Getting Good
"Summer stumbled in
just the way you always did."
**
"You were born in a snowstorm
but died in a heatwave,
leaving me somewhere in the middle,
holding space for two resentments."
Sorry I Haven’t Texted You Back
"The hatchets we planted
in the dead of winter
bloomed in June."
I Hope My Voice Doesn’t Skip
“Back when we searched for goldfish in the stone pond my father unearthed in the backyard on my little brother’s birthday. Back when the scent of citronella torches was synonymous with summer. Back when our grandfather was still alive and brought us doughnuts in a white box tied with a candy cane–striped ribbon.”
**
“Our hearts now beat at different tempos / I’m giving up, giving in, letting go / I don’t wish back the time we borrowed / I will remember when you were mine / when the summer sun glows.”
**
“When you and I met,
you smelled of summer
at the Jersey Shore and
I wanted to bottle up the
entire four seconds.
I was woken up that day.
It was as if I had slept through
the other three seasons
and had just opened my eyes
in the dead heat of July.”
Stuff I’ve Been Feeling Lately
“I like the smell of summer,
but the thought of winter
keeps me warm.”
**
“The aroma from the air conditioner
in my window welcomed me
like hot coffee brewing.”
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