Ellen K. Fee
Ellen K. Fee is an educator and writer from the Upper Midwest. Born in Wisconsin, Ellen graduated from the University of Minnesota and works with school-age youth in creative writing and publishing programs. Her work appears in The Caterpillar, Corbel Stone Press, and stamped into the sidewalks of St. Paul, where she lives. She can be found on social media @ellenkfee.
Minnesota
Is it hot shame or climate change
that boils the lakes in the apples
of your cheeks? Honeycrisps
that rot on the branch
while we gather and stand
murmuring.
The mush tracks home
on the bottoms of our boots.
Each winter that isn’t
endless is a reason to worry.
Each spring cuts across my skin
with ugliness and relief—
we can stop pretending
the snow is white, beautiful.
Outside again, I thaw too quickly
and spoil but can’t resist the pull
of the river, the stench of death,
life, and trash all greeting the air
as equals. Minnesota.
There are those who come for refuge,
who know its hollow embrace,
and those who leave,
and when one turns into the other,
I don’t blame them—
our vowels unable to round
themselves around the word
sorry and mean it.
We could build castles
with our expired lawn signs.
We won’t.
We will well-mean ourselves
to death and the water
will be cleaner without us.
When I stand on the Lake Street Bridge,
imagining how it was meant to be,
the span vanishes under my feet.
It’s autumn again—the maples dead
or glowing red, already resigned
to becoming flames.
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