Instructions for the End
push the needle of the pen
burning sensation
then pour grief in
there are many kinds of loss
some have names some we swallow
fit what you can in a pill
there is no plan to save us
trespassers take up your tools
we will store things here we need
and when the siren sounds
lay mirrors in the street
bring heaven down to earth
Copyright © 2011 by Jen Benka. From Pinko (Hanging Loose Press, 2011). Used with permission of the author.
Jen Benka
Jen Benka is the author of the poetry collections Pinko (Hanging Loose Press, 2011) and A Box of Longing With Fifty Drawers (Soft Skull Press, 2005) and holds an MFA from the New School. Benka has served in executive leadership positions at national literary arts and writing organizations for more than two decades, including previously as the President & Executive Director of the Academy of American Poets from 2012 to 2022, and currently works as a consultant to nonprofit and philanthropic organizations. Benka lives in New York City.