Elevator

by Whitney Waters

I fell
12 floors            (sitting against the silver door)
hit bottom (concrete)   grabbed onto
wooden framework
so I came back
will you recognize me?
you are pressing the elevator button
as you were                     moments ago
we swam            as shadows over rock
(knowing) we were being chased
what it feels like
is falling            in bed
like forgetting the house keys
and now there’s a new family
have you told her my name?
I watch you in the bedroom
mirror so I            remember
what to look for            exact
curve of spine            your silence
bound by those sharp angles
I am only river
and the fish swim              without me

Whitney Waters has taken several classes with the Great Smokies Writing Program and is currently enrolled in the Nutrition and Dietetics Program at Western Carolina University. She enjoys trail running, camping, and spending time with her dog, Tallulah.

About Elevator—This surreal poem was inspired by a dream in which I died in an elevator crash and came back a different person. It blends dream poetry with introspection and the metaphorical resurrection of self after crisis.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Issue 28 – Spring 2023
Home
- Elizabeth Lutyens, Editor in Chief
  “It’s Only Human”
Interview
- Great Smokies Writing Program Coordinator Jennifer McGaha
  With Special Features Editor Janet Moore
  “What’s Next: Building on Firm Foundations”
Nonfiction
- Amy Jane Lynch
  “Walking the Barrel”
- Amanda Burns
  “Remembering Clare: A Love Story”
- Zoe Rhine
  “The Prankster’s Laughter Stone-Skips Across the Lake”
Fiction
- Billie Harper Buie
  “Refugees”
- Pam J. Hecht
  “The Lions”
Poetry
- Judith A. Davis
  “Stopping by a Farmstand on a Summer Afternoon”
- Karen Luke Jackson
  “Open Heart”
- Margaret Bishop
  “Dying to Be Born”
Craft Session
- Bruce Spang
  “Syntax as Style in Poetry:
  The Invisible Craft of an Artful Sentence in Poetry”
Reflection
- Zoe Newton
  “Selective Memory”
Archives
The Great Smokies Review

Elizabeth Lutyens, Editor-in-Chief, Founder
Janet Moore, Special Features Editor
Julie Abbott, Submissions Editor
Patrick Pickering, UNC Asheville Intern
Michael Mauney, Photographer

Jennifer McGaha, Great Smokies Writing Program Coordinator
Lilly Danzis, GSWP Administrative Assistant
Tracey Rizzo, Dean of Humanities, UNC Asheville

The Great Smokies Review is an online publication of The Great Smokies Writing Program, a joint effort of the UNC Asheville departments of Literature and Language, Creative Writing, and the Asheville Graduate Center.

SUBMISSION GUIDELINES
We accept student fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction submitted by faculty of the Great Smokies Writing Program and other UNC Asheville writing programs. Submitters will receive a guidelines checklist to complete.

© 2023 The Great Smokies Review

All rights reserved. This publication may be freely distributed only in its entirety and without modification, and only for private use. Excerpts may be reproduced and distributed only by permission, except in the case of quotations for use in reviews and interviews. The creative works published in The Great Smokies Review do not necessarily represent the views and opinions of its staff, The Great Smokies Writing Program, or the University of North Carolina Asheville.