Poetry by Hannah Montello

Picture of You

Oh god, how I would love to splatter paint

across your cheeks and curls,

open the blinds so the sun glows orange in your room,

and cup a camera between my palms,

the lens exclusively capturing you.

How I wish to lay you upon a bed of grass

and tuck dandelions behind your ears

creating a setting sun

haloed like a glorious crown above your brow.

To replace each freckle on your face with fluorescent paints

and cast a purple glow on your ivory skin,

the urge to create a galaxy in the universe of you:

replace you as my Creation of Adam.

I mourn for what I am not:

I am no painter,

I am no sculptor,

I am no photographer,

but lyrics course through my veins

and your beauty begs to be caught still.

All I have are my words

and I string them like beads around my neck,

for they are never spoken

but instead typed and bled.

Maybe one day,

I will have enough words to build every feature of your face,

ones that will never gray,

ones that will never age.

My picture of you,

one that could never fade.

Hannah Montello lives in Windsor, Ontario and has spent her whole life dreaming of becoming an author and a poet. She is currently studying at the University of Windsor to receive her undergraduate degree in English. Hannah has a deep connection to nature and you can always count on her to have a tarot deck and some crystals in her purse. To her, art is the most powerful thing in the universe, as it is the purest form of human expression and it is her biggest passion. When Hannah is not working on her fantasy novel or poetry, she can be found reading, playing farming simulators on Nintendo or tying up her skates for a game of hockey.