April 22, 2018

The Only Thing I Imagine .., by Xochiquetzal Candelaria

Today, a poem by Xochiquetzal Candelaria

The Only Thing I Imagine Luz Villa Admires about Her Husband’s Gun–

by Xochiquetzal Candelaria
is the six-chambered cylinder,
the spinnable heart,
how it clicks into place,

lonely but strong by design.
She understands its negative worth,
how it holds in the dark

and withstands what is held,
how it burns and smells
of smoke when left and left and left.


From Empire. Copyright © 2011 | University of Arizona Press.

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About the poet:  Xochiqueztal Candelaria is the author of the poetry collection Empire (University of Arizona Press, 2011). She was raised in San Juan Bautista, California, and holds degrees from UC Berkeley and New York University. Her work has appeared in The Nation, New England Review, Gulf Coast, Seneca Review, and other magazines. She has also written articles for the online journal Solo Ella. Xochiqueztal received fellowships from UC Berkeley, New York University, Vermont Studio Center, Bread Loaf Writer’s Conference (2005, 2006), Hall Farm Center for the Arts, The National Hispanic Foundation for the Arts, Barbara Deming Memorial Fund, and the LEF Foundation. She was the winner of the 2006 Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Prize, the Louisiana Literature Prize for Poetry, and the Gulf Coast Poetry Prize.  

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