Laurie Koensgen

Provenance

I have been sitting
on my hands
so long
my knuckles have merged
with the knots in this wood

and sent
down
taproots.

Mandrakes dangle
beneath my woman’s calm.

Don’t rip up these roots
for your amulets. Their tongues
will shriek and unseat
your reason.

This is my handiwork;
these are my charms.

—Laurie Koensgen

Laurie Koensgen is a writer and educator living in Ottawa. Her poetry has appeared in journals, anthologies and online magazines across North America and in the UK. Laurie is a founding member of the Ruby Tuesdays poetry collective. Her first collection, headlonging, is forthcoming with Floodlight Editions.