by Eva Reyes
Different Voices
Y:
Phoenician strain
Ancestor of F, U, V, W:
Little changed
In shape over the years:
Fey, unyielding.
Sinewy curves
Allow us expressions
Of all things poetry—
yawp
ylem
yowl
yapness
yearn:
In Spanish, Y replaces Anglo J;
Elsewhere, it doesn’t even occur
Signifying semivowel
Neither one thing
Nor the other
Supplanted by I
In a Middle Ages yearning to
Yield to modernity.
The New World
Had much to make
With quasi-, multi-, inter-:
We lost our Y
Our simplicity:
No longer yoicks of humble joy
We relish our I,
Always pointing back to ourselves—
Our yammering narcissism—
And have never regained
The delight we once felt
Mouthing our way through yond places
And other people.
Mary Christine Delea is a former professor who, since leaving academia, has been an AmeriCorps VISTA, a Poet-in-the-Schools, a Girl Scout leader, a baker for various charities, and a cat transport driver for animal shelters. She is the author of 1 full-length book of poems and 3 chapbooks, and her poetry has recently appeared in, or will soon be published in, various journals, including 3 Elements Review, Heron Tree, The Remington Review, and The William and Mary Review.
Eva Reyes is a novice artist and a freelance graphic designer! She is planning to attend art school in the near future to study graphic design. For now, she is designing the world one creation at a time!! Instagram: Short.stack1 Snap Chat: be_scared62 Twitter: @Cookienova3 Discord: PotatoSkinX