“The Coolness of the Glass” by Ainslee Workman
February 1, 2023
From here
I see nothing
There is nothing here
There is not sky, or soft curling clouds
There is no place where the sand becomes sea
From here I hear nothing
There is not gentle conversation
There is no snapping of branches
What a thing to be
To be standing at a window and seeing
Out, out and beyond
The solid wall that keeps the window’s place
What a sensation to feel
To feel the coolness of the glass against your forehead
As you push, as you
Fog up the glass with breath, as you
Leave greasy fingerprints
From here, I leave nothing
from here
Ainslee Workman is a twelfth grader at Ballard High School who worked with WITS Writer-in-Residence Rachel Kessler. Ainslee read this poem to open our free community event with Ross Gay on Monday, February 6, at Town Hall Seattle.