Four Poems

Karina Guardiola-Lopez


somnambulism

Today I woke up to the smell of fresh coffee and dead baby chicks 
I navigate the corridors where monochrome memories hang on walls
it’s cold and the wooden floor creaks a familiar song
the burgundy carpet reminds me of the echoes in Brooklyn
frosted fogged chilled windows look like ghosts 
I am greeted by the shadows in the kitchen 
they tell me to sit and eat breakfast
I see my father, my grandparents, all the pets 
I have buried in the backyard
the milk has gone sour
the crumbs are all gone
these shoes are too tight
I say a silent prayer
the tapping of a branch against the window
lets me know the visit is over


potluck poem

 

I sat in class with the blank page staring at me
these parched lips stole my focus
glancing at the clock, one hour before noon
I penned a poem about my love for food

Pesto sauce swirled in penne pasta
plump tomatoes, pierogi pillows, and fresh polenta
pita bread, pilaf, white pizza, to taste
pigeon peas, plantains, paneer on the plate

Pecans, pistachios, peanuts, and pine nuts
porridge, pudding, prunes, and pralines
pandoro, pancakes, pound cake, pies
parsley, peppercorn, and paprika spice

Passion fruit, pineapples, plums, and pears glazed
pina coladas, prosecco, and pink lemonade
the blank page is now filled, but with the wrong theme
at least I have a grocery list based on a foodie’s dream


Brown and Brown



She was raised on warm naan and Tandoor oven roti
while he savored corn tortillas and cheese arepas
together, they dined on 
arroz con pollo and chicken biryani
cilantro, chili, cumin, curry
all delicious, no difference
blessed from immigrant parents 
who turned struggles into opportunities
both from Queens
both resilient 
both Brown
unfazed by stares on their strolls 
to the mall, or the mosque, or la marqueta 
undeterred by the murmurs of the elderly
in their own communities
they quickly learned that love 
shared in the same hue was still different to some
yet they persevered together
pushed forward and beyond limits


How to Make a Quick Breakfast



Today, eggs sounded like a delicious plan
but I snoozed the alarm clock again

Instead, here's a quick breakfast on the go: 

  1. Bowl in hand, cereal of choice

  2. Go to fridge and get the coconut milk

  3. Pour milk, watch three drops fall

  4. Stare at cereal, taste dry cereal

  5. The grooves cut into the roof of mouth

  6. Realize cereal is stale

  7. Pour the barely wet cereal back into torn box

  8. Into the trash it goes

  9. Sweep up the crumbs

  10. Open the fridge

  11. Stare at the empty fridge

  12. Get two medium brown eggs

  13. Get a skillet

  14. A spoonful of plant-based butter goes in the skillet

  15. Crack eggs

  16. Stare at the matzah box in the corner of the counter\

  17. Look at the calendar

  18. Stare at the matzah box again

  19. A day early? Yet, still break a piece of matzah into the eggs

  20. Stir, a pinch of salt and a sprinkle of pepper to taste

So much for a breakfast in haste

Guess who is running late for work again?
Culinary chaos, my idea of a quick breakfast.


Karina Guardiola-Lopez

Karina Guardiola-Lopez, MSED, is a published poet, educator, and author from New York City and New Jersey. Her works have appeared in New Jersey Bards (2024), Pánoply Inaugural MultiCreative Anthology (2024), New Brunswick Library (2023), Hive Avenue Journal (2022), LaLiberta Online (2021), For Women who Roar, (2020), Great Weather for Media (2020), and many other publications. She has featured The NYC Poetry Festival, The National Black Theatre, Nuyorican Poets Cafe, Bowery Poetry Club, The Bronx Museum, and other locations. For more information visit www.kglopez.com.

 

 

 

 

 

Sofie Harsha