1st Place winner of the poetry contest: Kolob - Amanda C. Skuldt

I would have made a terrible Mormon wife. 
Can you imagine me in prairie drag?
Smiling in the pews husband and
six children passing hymnbooks and
bread? 
 
The only mind I would have paid to a second wife
was whether we would have a secret life of
stealing glances at the world beyond the veil
because that straight and narrow path was never
going to lead to my celestial kingdom. 
 
I find Kolob in the sacrament of my
sisters uncurling and hardening on my
tongue a baptism by immersion her
laughter like worship my soul for sale
for the arch of her back nails scratching 
clutching releasing me from outer
darkness like flocking of angels to the
birthplace of God. 
 
The covenant of the rainbow the ark in the
storm atonement for not knowing the plan of
salvation was always in the grasp of her hand
in the night when our dreams lay bare in
revelation.  The blessings of her temple the
signs and tokens of my eternal life. 



​[1] In Mormonism, Kolob is the star located closest to God’s throne. It sets the reference/standard for space, time, and levels of intelligence. 
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Amanda C. Skuldt is a nerdy old forest punk who loves to explore everything from tide pools and botanical gardens to rotting wood and mongoose tracks. When not working on Mindspire, the second novel in the Scattershot trilogy, performing at local poetry slams, or wrangling cats, Amanda is a cybersecurity Compliance Engineer, a Doctor of Philosophy in Government - focused on political violence and terrorism - and an avid reader of neuroscience, quantum physics, and philosophy.