Below is the title poem from my upcoming poetry collection, “Home is a Sweater.” Copies can be ordered through Finishing Line Press: https://www.finishinglinepress.com/product/home-is-a-sweater-by-stefanie-wielkopolan/
Home is a Sweater
Michigan is a tight sweater
snug around my chest and waist.
The neckline,
a compression of home
and the Great Lakes.
In the summer, spun wool
suffocates and
icicles puncture lungs,
in the winter.
The Detroit River
a rum running strait
slips up and down my left arm
while one gold thread,
sewn through my shoulder blade
and right bicep,
whips strings
tightly around my back.
The broken phonograph
from my grandparents’ attic
wraps my spinal cord
and squeezes
until the music
is finally heard.
Stefanie Wielkopolan 