To Devour Heaven

by Syndey Fisher

It’s a familiar taste upon my tongue–
The flesh and blood of my flesh and blood

I bite and chew and grind and suck
Yet my hunger…. It lingers

This instinct, it gnaws at me, making my stomach gurgle and kick like a memory inside of me–
Like elbows slamming into my ribcage and muffled screams obscured by muscle and sinew

From where you stand it is a quiet affair.
The squelching is minimal- its jaw unhinges and he swallows the body whole.

“I see you,” his eyes say to you.
“You can’t look away,” the tiny body begs- as if that will change anything at all.

It’ll be your turn next, you know?
And it’ll be his turn forever.

The Cartographer

Every breath adds a fresh mark on the map
Every sigh forms a new landmark in remembrance
Every stumble leaves a scuff in its wake- a frowny face here, a scowling skull there
My inkwell is full and ready to touch fresh parchment

Sometimes I meet another cartographer in my wanderings
We compare our maps and let our quills touch each other’s hearts
Beware the deadends, the dark alleys, and the precarious ledges
Stay here if you’re ever in town, talk to this person if you are blessed with the opportunity

Sometimes when I don’t like what I see before me I look to my map
My map has changed so much since the day I first shakily dragged a quill across its surface
I can’t help but sigh and say, ‘But look how far I’ve already come.’

BIO

Sydney Fisher is currently getting her undergraduate degree in English at Azusa Pacific University and plans to get her master’s degree in Library Science. She also is pursuing minors in Screenwriting and Biblical Studies due to being a queer Christian artist with a love for all things cartoon.