at the bottoms
of boxes
like ugly sweaters
he might
wear again
one winter
when the
threadbare sky
cracks
and spills
its icy stars
as it did
when we were
little
had little
cares
danced
toward the future
as uncertain
as rainforests
our paper-mill-hearts
determined
to make
something sweet
of all this
pulpy hope
and suffering.
Jill Michelle's honors include a Best of the Net nomination for the title poem of her collection, Underwater (Riot in Your Throat, 2025), and the 2023 NORward Prize. Her latest poems are forthcoming in Lips Poetry Magazine, Poemeleon and Sheila-Na-Gig. She teaches at Valencia College in Orlando, Florida. Find more of her work at byjillmichelle.com.