Address

Amy Blyth Noble

A dress

won’t be enough to fix this.

Not a bright one, covered in flowers.

Do you want to bring out the bags under my eyes?

Display the facts:

I have grown

into a winter thing

Not blushing, bronzed or blooming, brittle.

Stiff dark cold. Left leaning.

Not curled and crushed for summer lovin’

no bleach

My roots are soaked in mud filled streets

blood filled streams,

no leaves, no filigree.

I’ve serrated bark, roots, edge of leaves

Not a nurturing tree, A Lady.

Do I look like one to you?

—

Amy Blyth Noble studied English and Creative Writing at Te Herenga Waka (Vic) and now writes about living with a disability and being a nerd. She lives in Wellington, and can be found hiding in local choirs. Her work has been published in Takahē, Turbine/Kapohau, circular issue 2, and the National Library of New Zealand, and upcoming in Mayhem. @mayblyth on Instagram.