caitlin gildrien / editors' choice prize in poetry - 1st place winner

"Please list any education or training you have had that is relevant to your artistic practice."

1.

I used to burn my fingers

on the espresso machine

until I trained them not to burn.

2.

I learned that a seedling tray

and a serving tray balance on the palm

in the same way.

3.

Once, in the third hour

of weeding carrots,

I squinted into the sun

and learned I was pregnant.

4.

I was trained

to smile.

5.

Once, I burned my fingers

on the espresso machine

while the boss's son stood behind me,

asking me what my boyfriend

called me in bed. I learned better

than to tell him.

6.

I was taught how to unzip the spine

from a dead rat in one hard pull.

7.

I learned to sit perfectly

still until the bell rang.

8.

Once, I sat bleeding

through my pants in a fancy restaurant

and learned I was not pregnant

any more.

9.

I trained myself to mend

ragged things with scraps

of thread.

10.

I was trained to cut

a straight line

with a sharp blade.

---

Caitlin Gildrien is a poet, visual artist, and designer living at the feet of the Green Mountains of Vermont. Her work can be found in Rattle, the Rumpus, Poets Reading the News, and more, where it has been nominated for Best of the Net and Pushcart Prizes. Her first manuscript, Cradlesong for a World’s End, is looking for a home. Find her at cattailcreative.com.