Sabrina Vellani

ALWAYS IN REFUGE

in the beginnings of centuries

we are born amidst chaos and don’t know of it

this is my home: i, in the rubble at my mother’s feet

her soles still crave tanganiyka’s sands

and my father catches coins in the midair smog

they are dropped by the giants brewing over our rooftops

what’s in a land if it saves you from the forces that prey within:

family burdens breed

they think bulldozed walls are our full standing shields

we walk on crumbling floors

infants scream when they realize

my lungs breathe in the smoke

i cough on my way to shrieking about the wildfires that loom

at least they taught us how to run.

Sabrina Vellani is an Indo-Canadian Actress & Writer. She received her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Theatre Acting at the University of British Columbia in 2018, along with a Creative Writing Minor Degree. Under her pen name, Sabrina's poetry and essays have appeared in multiple publications such as The Malahat Review, Filling Station Magazine, EVENT Magazine, The Anti-Languorous Project, The Bookends Review and more. Her work has been published in Pulp Magazine and PRISM International under her real name... Full Profile