Welcome to Poetically Yours, which showcases poems by northern Illinois poets. This week's poet is Anna Jollymore.
Jollymore debuted her book "Words for Becoming" in 2025. Her work explores the process of personal evolution, weaving observation and introspection with precision and dry wit. Jollymore, a Midwesterner, traded the sheep and cornfields of Iowa for the cultural hub of Chicago. She recently settled in Rockford, Illinois, and said she has been impressed by the city’s vibrant arts and literary scene. With a background in both linguistics and applied mythology, Jollymore finds inspiration by drawing parallels between the mythic and the mundane, highlighting the elegance of nature, spirit and archetypal stories that emerge from everyday life.
Here’s her poem "Everything I Brought Home from the Mountains."
Back home!
And excited to unpack
Everything I brought back from the mountains
Listening to the spring birds trill
A peripheral sensation creeps forward
And I know I’m not the same person
I was when I left home
And my tongue is molting its winter coat
Like a young deer in rutting season
All patchy with raw bits
And fresh pink skin emerging gingerly
It is both strange and specific
And from this stillness I intend
To re-emerge slowly
Tenderly
Myself
Eyelids opening
Like sunny daffodils
Ragged breath
April rain
And an intention to let
Only jewels fall from my mouth
For a season
Copy Edited by Eryn Lent
