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The house is old, the wood that frames
it tired of the burden of holding

up the walls. The roof took flight
long ago, a storm it thinks,

or perhaps the shingles
just decided, en masse, to fly

like birds, to warmer climes,
the great migration of the material

abandoning the nest like fledgling
chicks. Between the floorboards seedlings rise,

pushing it aside to reach the light, which is the way
of things, it supposes. The old house shudders,

vines and creepers circle the crumbling frame, thin
arms lithe and loving, a comfort.

It's not so bad it thinks,
to be abandoned by the people

who cut down its trees, drove nails
into its limbs, sheltered themselves

within its body. Now finally it is
left to crumble, to become soil

again, leaving manmade dreams behind
for the natural, wild world, for dust.



Lynette Mejía writes science fiction, fantasy, and horror prose and poetry from the middle of a deep, dark forest in the wilds of southern Louisiana. Her work has appeared in Daily Science Fiction, Nature: Futures, and others, and has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize, the Rhysling Award, and the Million Writers Award. You can find her online at www.lynettemejia.com.
Current Issue
18 Mar 2024

Strange Horizons
We are very happy to welcome Dante Luiz as a new fiction editor on the team! Dante is a Ignyte Award winning author, and has been with Strange Horizons working as an Art Director for the past several years. We’re stoked to bring him on to the fiction side and have him bring his wonderful insight and skill to the fiction team.
Day in and day out, the rough waters of the Pacific slam themselves against the protrusion of sandstone the locals refer to as Morro Rock. White streaks of bird shit bleed down the rock, a testament to the rare birds of prey that nest in its pocked face overlooking the bay.
in my defence, juggling biological and artificial, i tripped over my shoelace, and spilled my lungs empty of the innocence that was, before guilt.
the birds, / who carry with them / the many names of the dead
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