POLA VORTEX
by TRICIA KNOLL
Art by BRETT STOUT
I am the witch’s tit. My bitch bra is made of silver–not brass. I make ice mirrors
and hand you froth. Call me Pola. Lusty wind diva. Cringe all you like.
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Be warned: Jail break! I am no longer stuck to the cloverleaf of arctic. I swoop to
kick ass on your sad little towns, clog your straight-arrow roads, shiver your tim-
bers, and kill your weak. ICE? You ain’t seen nothing yet. I lock you homebound
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and rub you raw. Plow me? I keep coming. I’m higher than kites, clouds, sky-
scrapers, and drones. My slip shows–flakey lace. White and quite long-wear-you-
down. Hah! I’m a swirling hurl-a-girl layback spin, skating your way on ice-sharp
blades. Flashing my flowing skirts–silver thaw and midnight blue.
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You ignored me. You favored rant-chants about warming and ignored me. The
sea beneath me went soft. We are going to dance, you and me. Like it or not,
I lead the new dance. Buckle up! Snowshoes. All-wheel drive and all-weather
coats.
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You don’t have time to tame me. I’m counter-clockwise. Pola revolutionary.
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Fools unlocked the gate. I’m no more stay-at-home dame. Good times from Pola
Mama. You get what you deserve.
TRICIA KNOLL lives in the Vermont woods -- knows how frigid air has escaped the boundaries of the Arctic to freeze up her state. Nine of her full-length poetry books or chapbooks have been published. Her book of eco-poetry, One Bent Twig, details the ecology of trees she has loved and planted. She is a Contributing Editor to the online journal Verse Virtual. Website: triciaknoll.com
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BRETT STOUT is an artist and writer originally from Atlanta, Georgia. He is a high school dropout and former construction worker turned college graduate and paramedic. His work has appeared in a vast range of diverse media, such as art and literature publications by NYU and UCLA.