Understory, Fall 2026—Issue I (Digital Edition)
lemons
by kathleen wagner
They say that when life gives you lemons,
you should make lemonade.
Some go a step further and
get real creative with those lemons.
You should make lemonade
carefully; find a balance between sweet and sour
that you can enjoy every day.
Some go a step further and
share it with their friends. Just remember:
what some find sweet, others think is too sour.
Get real creative with those lemons;
lemon ice, lemon tea, there’s lots of things you can make!
Whatever life gives you, make something of it.
The American Dream
A home that’s yours
with friendly neighbors
who love life like you.
Earning your keep
with good, honest work
while trying new things.
Falling in love
and planting your roots
for generations to come.
Memorizing history
day in and night out
in case they test you.
Keeping papers close
and watching the streets
for stray bullet holes.
Protecting each other
to fight the hatred
that ruins the dream.
Ghosts in the Workshop
I saw ghosts everywhere.
Amid the saw dust and wood chopped
in Grandpa’s basement workshop,
I saw ghosts everywhere.
Amid the saw dust and wood chopped,
his tools were scattered with intent.
He planned to be back when he went,
amid the saw dust and wood chopped.
His tools were scattered with intent;
why wouldn’t he come back again?
Why would this be the last time when
his tools were scattered with intent?
Why wouldn’t he come back again?
With so many projects left undone,
He’d likely only just begun;
why wouldn’t he come back again?
With so many projects left undone,
I see ghosts everywhere.
“Could have been” hangs in the air,
with so many projects left undone.
I see ghosts everywhere.
Amid the saw dust and wood chopped
in Grandpa’s basement workshop,
I saw ghosts everywhere.
Late Night Queries
Something troubles me
on this starry, moonlit night.
Tell me, beloved,
and soothe the fears that plague me:
would you love me as a worm?
-
Oh light of my life,
you are the air that I breathe,
the reason I live.
To make a long answer short:
yes. Now go the hell to sleep.
Hope
“Yet if hope has flown away, / In a night, or in a day, / In a vision, or in none, / Is it therefore the less gone?” —Edgar Allan Poe, A Dream Within a Dream
Hope is shown in many signs:
lotuses upon the lake,
an olive branch extended,
the sign of the holy cross
upon our minds, lips, and hearts.
Both phoenix and columbidae
spread their wings for want of hope,
that rare and radiant light
known to man as sacred hope.
Yet if hope has flown away…?
Sometimes it goes unnoticed;
the light fades into the void,
silent and invisible
until it is far too late.
Sometimes it rages, dying
violently with blood and teeth;
it goes away not gently,
but with the wailing of man.
So if that hope fades away,
in a night, or in a day…
Something is both lost and found.
Lost: the heart to keep moving
for the sake of bright futures.
Gained: a jaded view on life
that struggles to see the good.
Lost: the freedom to lay low,
the choice to let others fight.
Gained: man’s determination,
the stubborn will to make hope
in a vision, or in none.
Such thoughts do seem contrary.
How can man both lose its will
and gain determination?
How can man lose its freedom
of choice when its jaded eyes
can count all the ways to die?
Consider these words instead:
if hope is seen only once,
its light touching one small soul…
is it therefore the less gone?
Kathleen Wagner is a lover of stories, no matter what form they might take. Her poems have appeared in various anthologies and her micro fiction piece won third place in Issue #52 of Fairfield Scribe's "Scribes Micro Fiction". She currently lives in Raleigh NC with her family and two cats.