Kim Kelly

CONTACT:
Email: answersintherafters@gmail.com

BIO:
Kim Kelly has been published in Euphony Journal. Born in Minnesota and raised in Alaska, she received a BS in English-Creative Writing from Northern Arizona University, and an MA in Communications from University of Wisconsin. She travels widely and has lived in three countries, residing now in northern Wisconsin with her longtime partner, near their children’s growing families.

In retiring as a University Instructor/Program Director Kim now has the time to match her life-long passion and dedication to her craft with greater activity in the literary world, submitting poetry for publication, giving and attending readings (and festivals, conferences). She has had the immense fortune of working to edit her poetry with independent editor, April Ossmann, over the last eighteen months. She also enjoys an 8,100-strong Instagram following on @kimberlykkellypoetry of separate, shorter poems and looks forward to partnering with her publisher to publicize her book. She is also an active member of the Academy of American Poets, Wisconsin Fellowship of Poets and Minneapolis Writers’ Workshop.

Poetry

Starting with a Mirror

i spoke to the mirror
twisted my spine
like curved red ribbon
around a carousel
it cracked beneath
the bodice’s silk:
a snap like black plastic
slapping a fence

as i remember
buttoning coats          
of a father taken early
by a driver drinking
rum from a tumbler
my father, mother
had a reason
to say goodbye

before i did that day,
before my hand
warmed the cold phone
as i eyed my chaos
squashed cardboard box:
yesterday’s sweater,
an opal violet vase,
i cry on, in my bridal attire

Originally published in Euphony Journal