Firecracker witch fit,

Hunt for gin and kill for it,

Like how mom’s mom took to bars, moths to light,

Downtown bottles dripping on her wings.

Tending Granny’s toxic orchards,

Kids tiptoe on broken glass

Harvesting apples in ash trays,

Nurturing crops for cancer.

Snowfall at the funeral,

Grim veils draped over vomit-soaked sins,

Childish mouths sip child-like flasks.

Granny isn’t there to get them dressed

In once white suits and satin shoes, 

Now choked in charcoal from cracked-up lungs.

Seeds from Granny’s trees still planted in me,

Bud-kept company nestled in my fingers,

Like kindling of a coven

That hexed her soil and spoiled our wombs.

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Teomi Avila Baker is a writer hailing from the west coast (best coast), currently located in Montreal majoring in creative writing and liberal arts at Concordia University. Her poem “Molly & Me” was previously published in the 2019 issue of UBC's New Shoots Anthology. Avidly avoiding a genre to be boxed into, Teomi writes anything and everything that comes to mind, especially at 2 am when she really should be sleeping. She can often be found at poetry circles, cafes, or frantically typing a trailing thought into her notes app before it's lost on her entirely.