Week of March 26th Featured Writer: Randi Clemens

About Randi:

Randi Clemens is a 2016 graduate of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with Bachelor's degrees in both English and Creative Writing. Some day she hopes to make a living out of poetry, but for now she converts text books to accessible media, writes in her free time, and dreams of owning/petting cats.

Balancé I am continuously breaking my body, contorting,

malleable like nylon filaments.

I have been crafted into a duplicate dressed

in black, but I am a skeleton. I dance

with my bones.

I have skin, but it is all sequins, glitter

and bruises, costumed in itches

I am conditioned to repress.

When I look in the mirror, I am

automatic — mechanical

in synchronization.

I rip flesh from my feet, crack

my nails like frail pottery.

Even with the open sores

blistering with each step

they always turn me back

to this sweet, sick catharsis.

If you want to read more of Randi's writing please visit: randiwriteshello.tumblr.com.