Poem by Anna Mark
Birthplace
It was the hayloft’s aerial devilry— stench of rot in the heat,
barn boards strewn with excrement, swallow and bat,
littered with too many winged corpses for a child to revive—
that compelled her
to startle the nestlings’ dormant balconies into a frenzy
of throats, ablaze at her pounding steps’ command,
to exhaust their instincts.
One thing leads naturally to another in the hayloft
and she tests the sagging boards, judges if they’ll hold
and dangles her burdened legs, weightless now, free as a bird,
soothing figure eights stirring everything
into the cauldron, the barn below, which is her way out,
where she steals a nestling and cradles its listless body,
barely alive, and she didn’t, couldn’t— can’t put it back, but
cradles the hallowed hollow where it belongs.
About the Author – Anna Mark
On the territories of the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation, Anna’s poems appear mostly in Canadian Journals: Literary Review of Canada, CV2, Spadina Literary Review, Pinhole Poetry; forthcoming in Canadian Literature, Prairie Fire and others. She enjoys writing as a practice of transformation, and watches for those mercurial words in herself, others and the trees!
Keep Reading…
- Between Art and Story
My Aunt Pat introduced me to Nick Bantock’s books many years ago, and I’ve loved his work ever since. I think of her whenever I pick one up. Bantock is a British-born artist who made Canada his home. He studied painting and spent years working as an illustrator, designing hundreds of book covers before creating books of his own. He was, in some ways, an accidental writer. - A Tree Grows in Two Directions
Above ground, we notice the trunk, the branches, the leaves, the fruit. Below ground, the roots are doing quieter work: growing into darkness, responding to gravity, creating the strength that makes everything visible possible. This article explores that idea through writing: the private work, discarded pages, questions, stream-of-consciousness writing, and all the thoughts that happen before a finished piece ever reaches another reader. - Anne Carson Wins the 2026 Nobel Prize in Literature
Canadian poet, essayist and translator Anne Carson has won the 2026 Nobel Prize in Literature. The announcement celebrates a writer whose work continues to expand the possibilities of literature, moving between poetry, prose, translation and visual art.
Meanwhile, at Dreamers…
Fireside Writing Retreat
It’s simple; a set of prompts, a loose structure, and time set aside to move through it at your own pace. You can follow it closely or not at all. There’s no expectation to produce anything finished.
Dreamers Writing Farm
Dreamers Writing Farm is the physical home of the Dreamers community, a quiet, creative space on the Bruce Peninsula in Ontario. Writers, artists, and travellers stay here throughout the year in simple, literary-themed cabins, tents, and studio suites.