Listen to Kori Frazier Morgan read “Matryoshka.” 

 

Most of the time,
it feels like I’m sloshed on the couch,
watching the newest Netflix Original Series
known as Me Going About My Day, in which
I am a spectator rather than a participant.
It’s not even an interesting show at that—
the Protagonist has no agency, barely
does anything, just sits there dazed,
as if she, too, is merely watching herself
watch someone else, watch someone
else. It isn’t, as many mistakenly think,
sadness, although I wish it were—
that would be much less complicated.
It’s more like frustration enfolded in
pain, enfolded in exhaustion from simply
existing, letting episode
after episode play.

 

 

Kori Frazier Morgan received her Master of Fine Arts in fiction writing from West Virginia University. Her fiction, nonfiction, and poetry have appeared in Shenandoah, SN Review, Switchback, Forge, Rubbertop Review, Up the Staircase, Prick of the Spindle, and other publications. She is the author of Bone China Girls: A Poetic Account of a Female Crime, a chapbook of persona poetry exploring the death of sixteen-year-old Sylvia Likens in 1965 through the eyes of the women involved. She is passionate about the use of music, film, literature, and visual art, as well as the creative process, to bring support and healing to those struggling with mental health concerns. Visit korifraziermorgan.com and follow @writerkori on Instagram.