Kailey Tedesco
My Body, Brimming with Ancestors
I have tossed laser-
cut stars against
velvet curtains
as though I am
a sudden force of nature
stirring
astrology as easily
as swirling
a glass of red wine.
I was kept behind
arched doorways
as a child,
left to the company
of acrylic Madonnas
who whispered
names of everyone
on Earth
I would never know
to pray for
until it was
much too late.
I name
the children within
me long before
they’re due
to sleepwalk
my marrow
& I try always
to welcome
their attempts
at clawing
through my skin
with a smile.
Kailey Tedesco is the author of These Ghosts of Mine, Siamese (Dancing Girl Press) and the forthcoming collection, She Used to be on a Milk Carton (April Gloaming Publishing). While her last name is Italian for “German,” she does not know much about her heritage, but was once told there are some family secrets that go back several generations. She hopes to learn more soon. For more information about her poetry, please visit kaileytedesco.com.
OVUNQUE SIAMO 