Up Above
by Cara Chou
Virginia Commonwealth University
Cara Chou is a third-year student at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) in pursuit of a Biology major on the pre-medical track with Chemistry and Creative Writing minors. Her work is forthcoming in VCU’s literary journal, Pwatem, in her poems of "thump" and "On the platform." Her stubbornness and obsession of bubble tea derives from her family, while her reckless spontaneity develops from her friends. Originally from Virginia Beach, she loves the sea, and currently resides in Richmond to finish her degree and explore new pockets of the city. Follow along @cara_scribbles on Instagram to read more of her thoughts.
Up Above
Note: Please begin reading the poem from the bottom, and read upwards.
little star
maybe I’ll learn to shoot across like a
I stand, because if I can’t fly,
dizzying, losing oxygen – they’re close
they made my muddied shoes wet
twinkle twinkle
slip down my eyes
burn my throat
they sting my tongue
I swallow stars
I wonder what you are
but I can hear the stomping the slamming the screaming
only the hum of wind through the dark,
only the smattering of constellations are sprawled here
like a diamond in the sky
glimmering like a falling star
even alone, the coin jangled as I threw it out of my pocket
the tooth fairy stole a few extra teeth but left only a single dime
lyrics tumble from my gap-toothed mouth
I’ve reached the tip of the world, teetering-tottering
so high
world
at my small form as I finally stand with the
above, gaze aligned, they wink down
up
i have a secret but i can’t say it
taking a second to whisper,
Pressed to the earth, I cup my hand
still on the living room floor, still as a corpse
bleeding lip, busted like the cracked vase
last night she “talked” with dadda
bruised knee a vibrant purple, the color of momma’s cheeks
A slip and I crashed softly, jolting the stars
how I wonder what you are
like the careless smudge of momma’s lipstick
stained blemished disheveled
a thread of white clouds smearing a dark dark dark sky
The world above is a shelter
fly
i ran up the hill because i had never learned how to
Stumbling along, shoelaces muddied,
little star
Twinkle twinkle