An Online Literary Journal for Stories, Poems, Music & Art
  • Home

  • Archive

  • Contact

  • Blog

  • Contests

  • Submit

  • More

    • FB.png
    • twitter.png
    • blogger.png

    This site will no longer be updating.  We'll be migrating our past issues over to the new site - for now, they'll stay live right here.

    About The Writer​

    Darren Demaree Split Lip Magazine

    ​​Darren C. Demaree is living in Columbus, Ohio with his wife and children.  He is the author of As We Refer to Our Bodies (Spring 2013) and Not For Art Nor Prayer (2014), both are forthcoming from 8th House Publishing House. He is the recipient of two Pushcart Prize nominations.

    Three Poems

    ​

    Darren C. Demaree

    The battle is beneath us, internal
    & spread all over the lawn, registered
    in our nature to be the simplest seed

    ​

    & that scattering is what heartbeats
    the rain to raise us from even the shallow
    dirt in the back, where the dogs destroy

    ​

    everything, never bring anything back
    whole.  If we believed that bird calls
    were songs, we would not fear

    ​

    their beaks, we would not attempt
    to grow all over the property, to be
    basic, free to overwhelm the land.

    EMILY AS BLOOD GRASS

    Raging together, I have known women that left
    without reason.  I have known many women

    ​

    that left because I asked them to.  Now, when I
    see Emily, moving in the direction the flock is headed,

    ​

    I complete the weather to confuse them all.  I would
    welcome them all back, if Emily stayed the longest.

    EMILY AS THE DIRECTION THE FLOCK IS HEADED

    Back to Home Page

    EMILY AS LIT FROM BENEATH

    ​Tower, I leap
    & I leap into
    the traffic

    ​

    of your lashing
    heaven,
    the scissors

    ​

    of your decision
    to be mountain
    & moving target.

    ​

    In the valley,
    beneath you,
    I have friends

    ​

    that are birds
    that say you
    are only a girl

    ​

    & though I
    believe them,
    I believe

    ​

    the shining
    found you
    for me to follow.