Cotton Xenomorph is a literary journal produced with the mission to showcase written and visual art while reducing language of oppression in our community. We are dedicated to uplifting new and established voices while engaging in thoughtful conversation around social justice.

lessons from mi abuelito

by Iskandar Haggarty

I.

mi abuelito; his
skin dark, indian, beautiful

his head full of            (sueños)
hair, even at eighty,

me enamoré de tu abuela
la primera vez que la ví,


he’ll lean back, his
crooked grin / his

greying teeth / his
golden crown,

no te lo puedo explicar;
esas cosas se saben

sin pensar -  

his eyes           (aguada, la mar y las estrellas)          

younger than i
could possibly know,

solo se puede
sentir.



II.

to smell como
castaña is

to smell like
home. el hogar

no requiere una
casa, sabes.

the cobblestones the
mildew / las

ventanas de vidrio
débil / y un

viento tímido / el
jardín florecido

blooming / like
memories

el hogar
requiere solo

el amor.


Iskandar Haggarty is the EIC at Firefly Magazine and a Best of the Net nominated poet. His works have appeared / are forthcoming in Moonchild Magazine, Harpoon Magazine, The Stockholm Review of Literature, and others. 

Patience, Patience, Hortense, and Wilbur

Hypochondria, Least Powerful of the Greek Gods, pts ii & iv