New Poetry by Taya Boyles

The Souls We Stand On

If I had enough chalk. I’d give my mom

wings but I was unsure if I could hold her hand

and draw without breaking the line.

There was nowhere to go but whoever would hold me.

I may have found flesh covering wires,

as long as I was imprinted.

I’ve always been a sucker for shrines.

You’d have to build 60 million rituals

and dig trillions of holes to bury the souls we stand on.

Still, I would not last under the weight of one.

I held a buttercup to my chin

and it was translucent, but not promising.

I left to find some daffodil seeds to replant

because weeds could grow anywhere.

- © Taya Boyles 2023

Taya Boyles is a writer in Richmond, Virginia. She is currently a senior pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in English at Virginia Commonwealth University. Taya's writing journey started at just eight years old and has come far from misspelling glue. Her poetry and flash fiction have appeared in literary magazines such as Split Lip Magazine, Vermillion, Pwatem, The Rye Whiskey Review, Hot Pot Magazine, Radical Zine, and more.