by BEE LB
the heart susceptible to predation takes on symbiosis, allowing for growth, expansion, protection. the way a hummingbird will nest near the hawk— too small to be worth the effort of eating— and too low to be threatened by the jays flying high above. the way a heart will thread closed— an attempt to stave off vulnerability— all efforts to remain open without risk. you'll never know who you were meant to be: know only the dance of the sandhill crane, wings bent, body angled sharply, dipping in and out as if feinting in a fight. know only the orchard oriole, smallest of its kind; bowing near, looking up, see -sawing, begging, fast-paced fluttering wings, high-whistled chirp landing softly. know only the weight of your body on the ground, the impossible dream of flight. you watch your soul bloom spring, and know it will not last— love it still in its lack of lasting. you wait for summer. you sit in the sun. you go on living, letting your body carry you through the world you find yourself in. you crave the voice of a songbird and settle for words on the page. you make attempts. no amends. you resist explanation as fervently as excuses. instead, you dip into the water of dreams, a body submerged. a future waiting for you to find it. this is how you heal; you look out at the water and you do not wonder how full your lungs could be. you wonder instead if the common mallard ducks know their reflection. you wonder instead if the great blue heron will find its way back to you. you wonder instead if the mute swan has found a new body of water to home in. if there are, somewhere, similar grey bodies growing into white. this is how you heal.
The Turtles Dream
by Delta N.A.
BEE LB is an array of letters, bound to impulse; a writer creating delicate connections. they have been published in Revolute Lit, Roanoke Review, and Third Iris, among others. they are the 2022 winner of the Bea Gonzalez Prize for Poetry. their portfolio can be found at twinbrights.carrd.co
Paired in art and life, Delta N.A. work simultaneously on each artwork with a shared language that reveals deep meanings and speaks directly to the heart. Timeless stories develop in each artwork, where figures and forms are placed in a subtle and ethereal space halfway between dream and reality and where the soft flow of emotions and intuitions collects the sense of a free and introspective existence.
Delta N.A. spent years travelling to discover the world and their identity, and this experience in foreign countries has deeply marked their technical development and their artistic expression that now combines poetry and strength in a constant search for harmony, portraying the infinite dream of a total and exhaustive well-being.
The artworks signed by the duo are present in numerous public and private collections and have been exhibited in solo and group shows across Europe, U.S.A. and Asia.
Ignatian Literary Magazine 