ATLAS ON HIS KNEES | ACT I, SCENE III

Poetry
Written By Mason Peterson

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—and when atlas crumples to his knees under the weight, brow slick and
shoulders burning, the sky dips to join him—


—and when atlas’ breathing comes faster, faster, faster, the sky bows and the
mist trembles—


—and when the heavens break wide open, divine, splintering light spills out
from cracks in the grey-blue—


—and when the clouds droop low enough to skate across sidewalks and tarmac
and the mossy forest floor—


—and when he shakes the lines blur between hurt and holy but it’s fine because
the two of them are far too big for mortals to see, never too small, never—


—and when did he fall in love with the hurting, anyways? when did it become
safer to collapse under—


—and when atlas lets go, the sky hovers a hair’s breadth above him for just
one moment, the briefest reprieve from the weight of—

Mason Peterson

Mason Peterson (they/them) is a poet, scholar, and multimedia artist located in the Pacific Northwest. They hold a bachelor’s degree in culture, literature, and the arts from the University of Washington, Bothell, where they are currently pursuing an MFA in creative writing and poetics. Much of their work flits somewhere between the realms of fantasy and reality, exploring themes of queer joy, the body, and whimsical otherness.

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The Kiss