C - L O U D ////// R _ O D E - O
  • C- L O U _D
  • I S - S U E S
    • ISSUE 1 >
      • LILY DUFFY & SUMMER GREER
      • xTx
      • ESZTER TAKACS
      • JON STEINHAGEN
      • QUINN WHITE
      • RUTH BAUMANN
      • PORTIA ELAN
      • HOWIE GOOD
      • KRISTINA BORN
      • DANIEL ROMO
      • KAT FINCH
      • JAKE SYERSAK
      • MATT ROWAN
      • CODY KLIPPENSTEIN
    • ISSUE 2 >
      • RACHEL LEVY
      • MARK SCROGGINS
      • DAVID TOMALOFF
      • JULIANA LESLIE
      • JESSICA JENKINS
      • JOHN OLSON
      • KIM STOLL
      • JESSE MACK
      • NATE PRITTS
    • ISSUE 3 >
      • KEN TAYLOR
      • JOSHUA MARIE WILKINSON
      • JOSHUA HARMON
      • PJ WILLIAMS
      • ERIC BAUS
      • MICHAEL JOSEPH WALSH
      • PARKE COOPER
      • CHARLES ALEXANDER
      • J/J HASTAIN
    • ISSUE 4 >
      • CAROLINE CREW
      • NICHOLAS GRIDER
      • GEORGE KALAMARAS
      • JOSEPH LUCIDO
      • LIZ MCGEHEE
      • MARTIN CORLESS-SMITH
      • RACHEL SPRINGER
    • ISSUE 5 >
      • ABRAHAM SMITH
      • MICHELLE DOVE
      • RUSSELL JAFFE
      • MATHIAS SVALINA
      • SARA NICHOLSON
      • ALYSSE KNORR & Mx MACK
    • ISSUE 6 >
      • ANDREW ZAWACKI
      • CAROLINE CABRERA
      • DAVID BARTONE
      • NOAH ELI GORDON & DAVID PERRY
      • ALEXIS ALMEIDA
      • KYLE BASSETT
      • KATIE WILLINGHAM
      • ROB MACDONALD
      • CARLEEN TIBBETTS
      • J MICHAEL MARTINEZ
    • ISSUE 7 >
      • ADRIAN KIEN
      • AMBER NELSON
      • LIAM SWANSON
      • BECKA MARA MCKAY
      • ANDREW JORON
      • CLAIRE CRONIN
      • PHILIP SCHAEFER
      • RJ INGRAM
      • RACHEL MINDELL
      • WILL ALEXANDER
    • ISSUE 8 >
      • TANEUM BAMBRICK
      • ELENI SIKELIANOS
      • GEORGE KALAMARAS
      • RYAN BOLLENBACH
      • JOHN GALLAHER & KRISTINA MARIE DARLING
      • JOSHUA YOUNG
      • OREN SILVERMAN
      • KATIE JEAN SHINKLE
      • JOSHUA COREY
    • ISSUE 9 >
      • GALE MARIE THOMPSON
      • JOS CHARLES
      • CRAIG FOLTZ
      • MICHAEL SIKKEMA
      • JOSEPH LEASE
      • EVE KENNEALLY
      • TYRONE WILLIAMS
      • ALISHA BRUTON
      • C VIOLET EATON
    • ISSUE 10 >
      • PAUL CUNNINGHAM
      • EMILY O'NEILL
      • JEFF ALESSANDRELLI
      • VINCENT TORO
      • ROBYN ART
      • MARTY CAIN
      • ZACHARY EVANS
      • DYLAN KRIEGER
    • ISSUE 11 >
      • SARAH SGRO
      • MAGGIE WOODWARD
      • JULIA MADSEN
      • BRUNO RIOS translated by ROBERTO TEJADA
      • DENNIS JAMES SWEENEY
      • TIM EARLEY
      • JOSEPH MASSEY
    • ISSUE 12 >
      • VALERIE HSIUNG
      • MICHAEL MARTIN SHEA
      • GRAHAM FOUST
      • WILL NEWMAN
      • RAQUEL SALAS RIVERA
      • JEFFREY LANCE
      • SYLVIA CHAN
      • THIRII MYO KYAW MYINT
  • M_AST-HEAD
  • SUB-MI-T_
  • NEW_S
RYAN BOLLENBACH
DEAR KITE HEAVEN,


​the sky blue and pink leg you have taken away         boneless
                i want back


that faith in a diamond flying                          fear flies with it
extends the expanse               until death do we part              until a new bloom of body         
                  grounds          a plane

         i call them legs                 i call them to stand on                                     and abuse
        

                  i call them throats
i kick them in no matter how small the itch

        
                  to walk past the lightning strike
         in the landfill of the severed legs of kites and humans

        
                  how do you move in semaphore?
if i can speak triangles and quadrants correctly
                                                             axis          if you understand

         i have tied my toe with yellow string for a year tight
                                                                         and tied that string to a kite ascending
the path of vanished alphabets



                                                             if i should see a single bird



​
RYAN BOLLENBACH is an MFA candidate in the University of Alabama MFA program. His writing has appeared or is forthcoming in Sonora Review, Puerto Del Sol, Booth: A Journal, the Ampersand Review, and elsewhere. Find him on twitter at @SilentAsIAm.
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  • C- L O U _D
  • I S - S U E S
    • ISSUE 1 >
      • LILY DUFFY & SUMMER GREER
      • xTx
      • ESZTER TAKACS
      • JON STEINHAGEN
      • QUINN WHITE
      • RUTH BAUMANN
      • PORTIA ELAN
      • HOWIE GOOD
      • KRISTINA BORN
      • DANIEL ROMO
      • KAT FINCH
      • JAKE SYERSAK
      • MATT ROWAN
      • CODY KLIPPENSTEIN
    • ISSUE 2 >
      • RACHEL LEVY
      • MARK SCROGGINS
      • DAVID TOMALOFF
      • JULIANA LESLIE
      • JESSICA JENKINS
      • JOHN OLSON
      • KIM STOLL
      • JESSE MACK
      • NATE PRITTS
    • ISSUE 3 >
      • KEN TAYLOR
      • JOSHUA MARIE WILKINSON
      • JOSHUA HARMON
      • PJ WILLIAMS
      • ERIC BAUS
      • MICHAEL JOSEPH WALSH
      • PARKE COOPER
      • CHARLES ALEXANDER
      • J/J HASTAIN
    • ISSUE 4 >
      • CAROLINE CREW
      • NICHOLAS GRIDER
      • GEORGE KALAMARAS
      • JOSEPH LUCIDO
      • LIZ MCGEHEE
      • MARTIN CORLESS-SMITH
      • RACHEL SPRINGER
    • ISSUE 5 >
      • ABRAHAM SMITH
      • MICHELLE DOVE
      • RUSSELL JAFFE
      • MATHIAS SVALINA
      • SARA NICHOLSON
      • ALYSSE KNORR & Mx MACK
    • ISSUE 6 >
      • ANDREW ZAWACKI
      • CAROLINE CABRERA
      • DAVID BARTONE
      • NOAH ELI GORDON & DAVID PERRY
      • ALEXIS ALMEIDA
      • KYLE BASSETT
      • KATIE WILLINGHAM
      • ROB MACDONALD
      • CARLEEN TIBBETTS
      • J MICHAEL MARTINEZ
    • ISSUE 7 >
      • ADRIAN KIEN
      • AMBER NELSON
      • LIAM SWANSON
      • BECKA MARA MCKAY
      • ANDREW JORON
      • CLAIRE CRONIN
      • PHILIP SCHAEFER
      • RJ INGRAM
      • RACHEL MINDELL
      • WILL ALEXANDER
    • ISSUE 8 >
      • TANEUM BAMBRICK
      • ELENI SIKELIANOS
      • GEORGE KALAMARAS
      • RYAN BOLLENBACH
      • JOHN GALLAHER & KRISTINA MARIE DARLING
      • JOSHUA YOUNG
      • OREN SILVERMAN
      • KATIE JEAN SHINKLE
      • JOSHUA COREY
    • ISSUE 9 >
      • GALE MARIE THOMPSON
      • JOS CHARLES
      • CRAIG FOLTZ
      • MICHAEL SIKKEMA
      • JOSEPH LEASE
      • EVE KENNEALLY
      • TYRONE WILLIAMS
      • ALISHA BRUTON
      • C VIOLET EATON
    • ISSUE 10 >
      • PAUL CUNNINGHAM
      • EMILY O'NEILL
      • JEFF ALESSANDRELLI
      • VINCENT TORO
      • ROBYN ART
      • MARTY CAIN
      • ZACHARY EVANS
      • DYLAN KRIEGER
    • ISSUE 11 >
      • SARAH SGRO
      • MAGGIE WOODWARD
      • JULIA MADSEN
      • BRUNO RIOS translated by ROBERTO TEJADA
      • DENNIS JAMES SWEENEY
      • TIM EARLEY
      • JOSEPH MASSEY
    • ISSUE 12 >
      • VALERIE HSIUNG
      • MICHAEL MARTIN SHEA
      • GRAHAM FOUST
      • WILL NEWMAN
      • RAQUEL SALAS RIVERA
      • JEFFREY LANCE
      • SYLVIA CHAN
      • THIRII MYO KYAW MYINT
  • M_AST-HEAD
  • SUB-MI-T_
  • NEW_S
✕