You Dress for the Army Ball

By Jennifer Markell

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It's #tbt! Enjoy this great one from SWWIM Every Day's archives!

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It isn’t green at all, this suit
you call Dress Greens,
not the color of living things
but what remains when a river 
of ice is drained. You align
your shirt buttons with the front 
fly seam, straight gig line 
with the belt buckle’s edge. 
Pin a grenade to your lapel, 
sallow eagle, frozen in flight. 
Turning to face the mirror,
you catch your reflection taking aim.

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Jennifer Markell’s first poetry collection, Samsara (Turning Point, 2014) was named a "Must Read Book" by the Massachusetts Book Awards. Her second collection, Singing at High Altitude, was published in 2022 by The Main Street Rag. She has received awards from the Chester H. Jones Foundation, The Comstock Review, The New England Poetry Club, and the Rita Dove Prize in Poetry (Finalist, International Literary Awards.) Her poems have been included in numerous publications, including The Bitter Oleander,
Consequence, Diode, RHINO, Storm Cellar, and The Women's Review of Books.

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• 04/10 / Poetry Reading and Conversation with visiting poet-in-residence Chloe Martinez and local poet Ximena Gómez / The BBar at The Betsy-South Beach, Miami Beach, FL / Live and Live-Streamed on Instagram Live/Facebook Live at @swwimmiami / 7-8:30 pm EST / Free

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