The Tattooed Poets Project: Chandra E.A. Dickson

Our next tattooed poet is Chandra E.A. Dickson who sent us this photo:

Photo by David Quick

Here's the piece in a little more detail:

Photo by David Quick

Chandra tells us:

"This tattoo was given as a gift to me for completing my MFA at Wichita State University by my dear friend Ryan Drake. He tattoos at Freaks on Noland in Kansas City. He can also be followed on instagram under the user name draketattoo. Ryan and I went to college together, and I owe many of his paintings. This tattoo is his 35th tattoo. He has done 100s now. 

The poem [below] is from my chapbook, A Short History of Our Love. There are many references to birds in my work, which is why I decided on a sparrow as both an image for my work but also for my tattoo because of the old saying "God never forgets a fallen sparrow" and at times we all feel that we have falling in some way or another."

For Jimmy

You called Thursday—8am—4 your time—to have phone sex, but I already had on pants and hadn’t heard from you in weeks. Your voice sounded as if you had been drinking for days. When I asked if you were ok, you said there had been no luck finding a bear to make friends with, a woman to keep my side of the bed warm, or a job on a fishing boat. The glacier’s peak calls you to ascend. Cracking ice in the middle of the night, the sound so harsh, not at all like wind against wheat, kept you awake. I tried to tell you about the thousands of sparrows that flew north over the church steeple, how empty I’ve felt since you left. 

~ ~ ~

Chandra E.A. Dickson received her MFA from Wichita State University and currently teaches at a small community college in the middle of the Plains. Her first chapbook, A Short History of Our Love"(Finishing Line Press), won the Kansas New Voices award in 2013. Her work has appeared in various online and print journals. She is currently working on her second chapbook, learning how to cook, and taking too many pictures of her children and pets.

Thanks to Chandra for sharing her tattoo and poem with us here on the Tattooed Poets Project!

This entry is ©2015 Tattoosday. The poem and tattoo are reprinted with the poet's permission.

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