Turtles bask,
heads up,
in sun.
The secret task
of wonder
claims my
body.
And as the water,
green and murky,
wrinkles whitely
in that light,
I stare.
May the presence of
what is
dismantle
fear.
By the Pond
August 1, 2026
Photo by Manuel Velasquez on Unsplash
August 2026
August 2026
Magda Andrews-Hoke
Magda Andrews-Hoke lives in Philadelphia, Pa., where she works at the Kelly Writers House as the editor of Jacket2 magazine. She studied linguistics and English at Yale University and was a recipient of the Frederick Mortimer Clapp Fellowship for poetry. Her poems and prose can be found in Commonweal magazine, The Hopkins Review, and elsewhere.
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