by Megan Cannella
When I met you,
I lost the word
depression.
My brain chemistry
didn’t change,
or however that works.
I’d look it up,
but what would my search
terms be
now
that I lost the word
depression.
That’s the trick
of someone learning you.
They notice
actions
patterns
twitches
shouting over your words:
rewatching Grey’s Anatomy
leaving dishes in the sink
an ever-evolving metaphor:
a can of biscuits
have fallen
on the floor
busted open
rogue Everything-
But-The-Bagel seasoning
fallen and forgotten
under a cabinet
presses into the exposed
biscuit dough
And, sure, those are all words.
But not google-able ones.
Not DSM-5-able words.
Still, you know metaphoring
is my favorite type of exercise
So you join me here
at play
at survival
at avoidance
at defeat
at something that looks like growth
even if we don’t squint.
We create a new language
prominently featuring
Olive Garden references,
with no time
for depression.
Megan Cannella (she/they) is a neurodivergent Midwestern transplant currently living in Nevada. Her chapbooks, I Redact You, Too (Alien Buddha Press 2022) and Confrontational Crotch and Other Real Housewives Musings (Daily Drunk Press 2021), are out now and available at https://linktr.ee/mcannella. Her chapbook Eldest Daughter: A Break-up Story is forthcoming from Porkbelly Press. You can find Megan on Twitter at @megancannella and on Instagram at @meeeeegancan
Emerge Literary Journal 