Jane Muschenetz
Emerging writer and fully grown MIT nerd, Jane (Yevgenia!) Muschenetz (Veitzman!) came to the US as a refugee from Ukraine at 10yrs old. She is now a mother to two very American kids. Womanhood, identity and cultural displacement strongly influence her writing. Creator of PalmFrondZoo.com, Jane’s work also appears or is forthcoming in Mom Egg Review, The San Diego Poetry Annual, and The Detour-Ahead Exhibit.Gutted
they worked on the building behind our street,
for five months straight, two crews
took the old walls down to the studs,
replaced rotten wood with the sawmill smell of possibility
for weeks, it stood bare to the wind
opening the neighborhood to concepts of improvement
easily, the first floor could hold a sidewalk cafe
with windows that bring the outside in when the weather is nice
the second floor could be housing, much needed, we all agreed
maybe a rooftop bar to catch the sunset view
over the park across the way?
I walked by it today
they covered the new walls in concrete
the grey is pretty close to the color it used to be
not one window was added, not one door made wider
Sheila-Na-Gig online 