Lana Valdez

Neighborhood Strays

the more i learn of god, the more i liken him to my neighbor, jude coltran. his dark
hair shadows the rest of his face, and he spends his days talking to the floor. jude
is like us, but his eyes can only tilt up a certain way, until they tire and retreat back
into his brain. i’ve heard stories, ones that could make me tear out fistfuls of my
hair in fear, but i still let jude take me out dancing to a club he goes to. i dance until
spots appear in front of my eyes, whirling disco balls and little red chandeliers that
line the ceiling. in the night, jude wakes me up to tell me about his god. we don’t
have to sell our souls or clothes, he whispers, he is already in us.

Lana Valdez is a twenty one year old writer, poet, and filmmaker living in Southern
California, most known for her poetry and short films. Her poetry collection. THE RED DOLL,
is available via Bottlecap Press, and her short films are on her YouTube channel, Lana Valdez.