Andy Chapolini has been writing poetry since childhood. Their work focuses on themes of loss, identity, and personal history. Andy is a physics student at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and a graduate of Massachusetts Bay Community College. He lives in Western Massachusetts.

I didn’t know what to do with them,

So I swallowed them  —

The smooth stones I picked up

On walks, on the days

When I missed you.

I knew it might be a long time

Before I could show them to you,

Before I could place them

Carefully.

I wanted to feel them sink.

I thought,

If I can’t make you feel lighter,

I can weigh myself down,

So at least you won’t bear the heaviness

Alone.

But now I dare to imagine

That I’ll tell you about them,

That one day I’ll want to get them back.

I can’t figure it out,

How to place stones on a grave

When they’re still inside me  —

So I succeeded, then,

In feeling with you  —

Grief is a thing

You can’t get out.