we will call it: erosion

PoetryArt & Photography
Written By Seneca Kristjonsdottir
 

I am a creek tucked in 

under the warmth-spotted shadows of a 

canyon’s elbow

where boys go to grow up

I am a pool protected by willows 

percolated from muave 

dimpled by the rise of champagne bubbles

where girls go to bathe 

eager for sanctuary, 

reptilian brains scurry towards the gifts of wild water 

despite the erosive nature of companionship 

together, we molted

until the sun could bake us as lizards 

far away from the skin we called home

“rough,” or “cracked” 

our heals catching on bed sheets, 

bookmarked and rusted with scabs 

reminders of each time we pushed our fingers 

deeper into stone cracks

deep into the economy of erosion

easily cutting through layers of sandstone

rushing sediment downstream

a flush, the color of rock 

red. orange. purple. teal. 

an exchange, the smooth shade of brown 

until the wear of time hits a basement layer

experts on lizards and rocks and water

who have tunneled to the basement,

arrive unpoetic,

agreeing on the term, used to describe it

file it under the category: “hard”

chipping my own stone teeth 

chewing on bed rock

just for some closeness 

to another freckled lizard back 

I am garnet. quartz. on flaking shale

legends of prehistoric tidal zones 

whittled by wind, 

exposed by rain

polished by floods 

seep stained, 

easily, swept into the current

Seneca Kristjonsdottir

Seneca works as a river guide in Idaho on the Salmon River, and in Arizona's Grand Canyon. Her identity and creative practice are both deeply informed by the landscapes she traverses. Seneca is forever seeking to understand the balance between human and natural systems, often contemplating our socially constructed ideals of nature. She measures her life in the quality of time spent and has found fresh air to be the cure for most hard times. These double exposures are an exploration into the tangled web of her seasonal life chasing waves, rocks, and rivers; while also moving in and out of love, community and relationship as a queer woman; a self portrait, considering the many layers of place, bodies, economies, politics, and connections that have come to define her. In her spare time Seneca edits and produces a small publication focused on creative work that reflects on wild landscapes called The Thalweg.

https://www.thethalweg.com/
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