MADDY SNEEP

I sprinkle catnip on the floor and watch the cats writhe around in the stuff, hedonists beneath the fur. I strip off my skin and roll around in it, too. With the power out and phone lines down I begin to see the metaphor in things. The thick, distorted oak tree in the middle of the parking lot, emerging from cement like a beast from a bloodied womb. It’s a shame we had to blow each other up in the end, but isn’t that how it always goes? The answer only finds you after you’ve failed the test. At any rate, I know a few things to be true:  I was here. I happened. I made this room a sanctuary. Now, with a flash of light and a walloping thud, I think of you and know you thought of me, too.


Maddy Sneep’s work can be found in Hearth and Coffin, Hot Pot Magazine, Stone of Madness, and elsewhere. Her poetry won 3rd place in the Papers Publishing Poetry and Prose Contest in 2023. She also peddles her wares on her Etsy shop, SNEEPSTUDIOS. She lives in Austin, TX with her two cats who inspire her to work less and lounge more.