"Cruel and Unusual" by Katja Jackson

I.

I found out how the butterfly lives,

how sunbeams lap against its wings.

II.

There is always a yellow bird darting around the river,

and the mechanical legs of a blue heron

twist and dangle from the joint—

a wide-eyed woman curls up on a park bench,

and I will never again remember to turn off the kitchen stove.

III.

The desert sky refused to give me its stars,

so, I sent a black picture to the boy I loved,

clutching my breaking body together in a hotel bathtub.

IV.

I disappeared one cool night,

swept up by the fog that swallows the Grand Canyon,

how the butterfly lives

just a memory on my eyelash.

Katja Jackson is an artist living in Coastal Virginia. She works across different mediums, using nature, myth, and historical context to explore and express women’s experiences. She can be found counting bats, photographing night herons, and analyzing lyrics—she is in love with music. Her art lives on Instagram @xtreewomanx.