hometowns have thousands of little ghosts
that do not stay in the cemetery. they are
pushing up through the renovated sidewalk,
catching you between the cracks. they are
littered alongside the main road; when it rains
they wash into your yard once again. they are
floundering in the baseball dugouts around the corner,
cracking the cinderblock like it’s skin-thin. they are
in your childhood friend’s window, gnawing at the glass,
reminding you that she isn’t there anymore
to chase them out.
Georgia Riordan
Georgia Riordan (she/they) is an MFA student at Rosemont College with a BA in writing from Ithaca College. She served as a poetry editor for Stillwater Magazine and a writing consultant from 2019-2021. Her work primarily focuses on her personal struggles with mental health, trauma, and identity within the genres and cross-genres of poetry, magical realism, and horror. Her previous publications include The Asbury Park Press, Il Giornalino 2017, Odyssey’s online platform, Vermilion Magazine, and Poets’ Choice Spring Anthology.