Bed

by Tricia Knoll

Of all the curled up, blanketed-down places
this is the cuddliest under the gray duvet
and my “Walk in the Garden” quilt
made by the El Rito quilters to raise
money for their library – cotton strips 
of moss-green leaves and French pink, 
or dried-blood red roses, some burnished
gold understates a promise that the now outside
of two-feet of snow, an unplowed road,
and scatters of cold chickadees will feel melt
and fuchsia peonies will find a way.

Find a way when today there is nothing
to do, no place to go, and if there were,
I’d stay to hear the boiler rumble.
The mask I have to wear is nowhere
as lovely as the quilt, my body warmth
that begs me to sleep it away, all day. 

Tricia Knoll is a poet in Vermont (U.S) who spent this last year alone in a house in the woods birdwatching, snow-watching and writing poetry. Her poetry collection, Checkered Mates, came out in April 2021 from Kelsay Books. Arabella Luna Friedland is a visual artist and writer based in New York City. She’s influenced by a childhood with cartoons, a classical education in anatomy and life drawing, and a firm belief that all art — is a portrait.