For Granted, Assumed

she sat on the park bench 

last night writing her words 

about those stories with 

the endings which 

seem so complete

because she knows 

the stories of 

Orpheus and Eurydice 

and the lengths of 

his caring for 

his love

because she sees 

the love letters 

her best friend 

receives each 

night and she 

thinks of how 

her own story

feels inadequate

because the greek myth 

proves the distance 

one will go for 

another, the ways

in which the heart 

can move so quickly 

carried by a 

good conscience 

and she sat on the park bench 

crossing out his name 

as she realized he 

would not move at 

the same speed 

she would have 

if something was

not right.

—

ILANA DRAKE is a sophomore at Vanderbilt University studying Public Policy. She is a student activist and writer, and her work has been published in Ms. Magazine, PBS NewsHour, and XQ Institute. Her poetry has been seen in multiple journals and literary magazines. She is passionate about inclusion, cold brew coffee, and dialogue.