Poetry By Kaitlin Neal

Ari He CC




building a cantina in an off-ramp 

the rattlesnakes round our throats
dance 
to what would be 
moonlight on      the larch trees

you fly a kite of phoenix                  into the stars
firing up 
the aurora 
so the jumping shrews and prairie 
dogs
have new green to follow on the snow 

so the     chrome 
of the car 
cat eyes around 
us
something to       pull         toward
while our teeth turn soft 
in conversation 

I 
melt into the gray slush of early 
winter 
coming on to 
September with                 impatience 

your seats are    warm
so you find me a 
cold room in the dirt
to home                our confessions 
alongside the pasta sauce 

the broken brush is privy 
to fears only animals have the      guts       to have 
bear-scented from             the 
madroño berries in your pocket 
and bleeding blackberries 
in mine

they have fermented 
with the lint 
becoming             sour         wine 
we store it next to the pasta sauce 

hidden in the maracas of                  rattlesnakes 
are the ghosts of our grand/mothers
they         
unfurl at our feast 
and learn to         become 
a looser 
necklace

​

Kaitlin Neal is a queer poet based in Edmonton, Alberta. Their work explores their own experiences with identity, belonging, connection and mental illness. Kaitlin’s poetry has been featured in several magazines, including Shadow and Sax, Feral, and Rawhead, with more forthcoming. They are currently working on their first chapbook, scheduled for 2026 with Shadow and Sax Press. More of their work can be found on Instagram: @kaitlinnneal



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