Author: EKArts

Erin Knape is a University of Michigan senior majoring in psychology and minoring in creative writing. Her greatest passion has always been the arts, whether that be writing, painting, or photography. Capturing Campus, a weekly installment of poetry and photography, aims to capture campus life through artistic expression. Dive into Capturing Campus every Sunday!

Capturing Campus: Gluttire

EKArts Leave a comment

Crack the knuckles 

at the knot

Tug the jaw

leave it slack for consumption

Gulp eggs whole

Thread chicken between teeth

Strands of sticky sauce

in the corners

and globs of rice on spoons

Molars press on bones and bread

Drink the wine and wince

at the bitter in cavities

and bleeding gums

Taste saccharine

songs of ice cream melting in 

momentary pleasure

Plead with paprika

stinging of soup

and hunks of potato 

in the battered pheasant

On the table

slice with knives and devious eyes

pork rinds and punishment

A bulk in the chest

begging for 

one    more        bite.

Capturing Campus: A Little

EKArts Leave a comment

I die a little each day

I breathe in and out even when I cannot

bear 

the silence

I think of you often

I think of us sometimes

mostly in the dark

The day feels too delicate

to suffocate beneath the weight

of your going

You’ve gone

I sometimes think

you’ll come back to me

flowers in hand

a smile on your face

and everything will be okay

Until then, I’ll die a little each day

Capturing Campus: the Forest

EKArts Leave a comment

the Forest

there are whispers in these woods

they call 

to me Breathing 

sweet nothings

born from blackberries

and figs The promise of purpose 

pomegranate seeds 

mashed by molars

mystifying It’s alive 

and breathing

though the exhale doesn’t 

stop

and the air has runs

and the lungs don’t 

e x p a n d

between trees 

the metallic clicking 

a painful 

gurgling The mouth of the forest 

opens wide

stealing air  

blood 

body 

from my soul

o u t s t r e t c h e d am I

doomed to the final moment

a death rattle

Capturing Campus: Soulful

EKArts Leave a comment

Soulful

Autumn leaves in piles

at your feet I smile

whisked up in the chill

of bare tree limbs

regal in poses

possessing the spirit

with promises of apple cider

and cinamon sticks

knitted sweaters

with kaleidoscope jewels

and amber sap

on sticky fingers

finding their way to

comfort in decay

an annual dance

of those bewitched 

by western winds

Fortunate are those

with the autumnal soul

Capturing Campus: Nosebleed

EKArts Leave a comment

Content warning: mentions of blood, profanity

Nosebleed

I see red

smell pennies

am I bleeding out 

my nose

or just my eyes 

adjustments are needed

contact lenses or otherwise

I’m woozy

walking somewhere

my legs will carry me there

there is where i will go

I don’t know where  

the world’s blurry

behind fluid-tinted glasses

how funny it is 

that my body can’t contain itself

in lungs or lifeblood

the capacity to

spill over the side

and to want to

pluck reds from strawberry bushes

bell peppers come from bushes too

but you don’t see people picking them

because who’d eat a bell pepper

when life’s dripping

and you’re bleeding all over the fucking carpet

Capturing Campus: Recipe from Hell

EKArts Leave a comment

Recipe from Hell

INGREDIENTS

1 garlic clove

5 sesame seeds

4 snake eggs

2 tbsp sage

1 fingerbone

DIRECTIONS

Mash the clove 

Grind the sesame seeds

Crack the snake eggs

Whisk until incorporated

Crush the fingerbone finely

Sprinkle bone dust and sage into the mixture

Whisk vigorously until the souls of your enemies cry out

(from beneath the floorboards)

Bake until golden brown, or until the angels weep at your feet

Leave to cool in the center of your pentagram

Allow the hellfire erupting from the ground to crisp the edges

Dig in!