spider-sense

by Rosalind Shoopmann

“Spider-Man is able to sense danger lurking near, the warning signal coming as a pain in his head that varies with the intensity of the threat. Spiders can detect danger coming their way with an early-warning system called eyes.”

—“Spider-Man vs the Real Deal,” The National Wildlife Federation Blog 

I have never seen a film 

by Roberto Rossellini, and

I have never seen a submarine

in real life, only ever images.

And I have never seen a dog.

And I have never seen northern California’s

gigantic prehistoric trees. And I have

never seen the inside of an ambulance.

And I have never seen anything good

in the little free library by my house. And I have never seen 

a serious physical altercation.

And I have never seen somebody pass

away. And I have never seen a football game.

But I have flown over Hudson Bay

in the winter, and when I looked down

I saw the vast fields of ice,

punctuated by enormous fissures. 

Rosalind Shoopmann currently lives in San Diego, where she recently completed an MA in English and Comparative Literature at San Diego State. Her work has previously appeared in The Bicoastal Review, Bullshit Lit, and at the Crisis Carnival Arts Festival.