This Has Been a Disaster

Light blue fades into swathes of blue, brown, white, grey, and yellow. — “Summer Sea, After Joan Eardley” by Judith Skillman

The phone rings

A call from you, like a fishhook in my cheek

Once you found my whistle
You never hesitated to blow

Already I’ve packed my boxes

I can hear the scraping now
Your tin heart, its rusty claws

About the Author

Holly Burdorff's work recently appears or is forthcoming in Cherry Tree, Diagram, and Dream Pop. She earned an MFA in creative writing at The University of Alabama and currently lives near Cleveland.

About the ARTIST

Judith Skillman paints expressionist works in oil on canvas. She is interested in feelings engendered by the natural world. Her art has appeared in Windmill, Artemis, The Penn Review, and other journals. Skillman studied at McDaniel College and the Pratt Fine Arts Center. She is a member of the Seattle Artist's League.