Return to The Alsop Review home page.
Vacationing With Sylvia Plath


Maybe I should have come alone.

Maybe if the clouds didnt resemble
tombstones and I had brought something 
more upbeat to read 
the ocean wouldnt seem so final
an ongoing thought carried to shore
then taken away, 
washing the same green sock 
over and over again.

Maybe if I was taking medication 
or at least St. Johns Wort, 
maybe if I had a chocolate bar 
to eat between breakdowns 
the seagulls cry would be more of a sigh 
and the waves wouldnt seem so blue.

Maybe a lot of things. Maybe 
if I could slip into Sylvias mind, 
sort out the spices in her spice rack, 
alphabetize them and dust them off.
Maybe then Id understand how 
its the little things that pull you under. 

 
© Kelli Russell Agodon