Four Poems
Wend Yasen is an Iraqi-Canadian student at the University of Toronto, where she is currently completing her Bachelor in Humanities. Her poem “Oh Tigris. Oh Euphrates” was published in the Hamilton Spectator in 2017.
Secret #3: I Hate What I’ve Become.
I have never been prone to honesty.
Swallowing the thorns of truth, still,
I prefer the leaves of dishonesty.
Whispering secrets to the sage,
the words feel heavy as they spill.
I have never been prone to honesty.
Lying to the tulips as they age,
“You’ll live despite the chill.”
I prefer the leaves of dishonesty.
Wilting within the rusted cage,
my secrets disguised as daffodils.
I have never been prone to honesty.
Budding from my lips, a phage
of half-truths as shallow as the rill.
I prefer the leaves of dishonesty.
Promising the bluebells to assuage
the pain of every lie I told the ghyll.
I have never been prone to honesty,
I prefer the leaves of dishonesty.
Secret #5: I Want To Ask Questions.
Wavering in thought,
I ask the wisteria
Do you talk to God?
Secret #6: I Am Afraid Of The Answers.
A foolish question,
the wisteria grumbles
for a foolish girl.
The Bird That Built Its Cage
Self-painted white walls,
homespun penitentiary.
Four doors, no way out.
Wend Yasen is an Iraqi-Canadian student at the University of Toronto, where she is currently completing her Bachelor in Humanities. Her poem “Oh Tigris. Oh Euphrates” was published in the Hamilton Spectator in 2017.