Fractured Fairy Tales by Alex Stolis

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Fractured Fairy Tales

Once upon a time, love was a potion with no antidote.

Once upon a time, innocence was enough to rule a kingdom.

Once upon a time, the bad guys always lost.

Once upon a time, we were cowboys and astronauts and ballerinas and secret agents.

Once upon a time, this is our history.

Once upon a time, the Prince never got cancer.

Once upon a time, days were clocked in hours, minutes, secondhand sweeps

not treatments, prognosis, and insurance claims.

Once upon a time, we could Houdini our way out of any danger.

Once upon a time, Cancer was a crab, Pisces was a fish, and Leo was a lion.

Once upon a time, sleep was a refuge, not a side effect.

Once upon a time, we could live forever with the wave of a wand, 

magic words, and faith.

© Alex Stolis

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Alex Stolis

Alex Stolis has had poems published in numerous journals. Two full-length collections, Pop. 1280 and John Berryman Died Here, were released by Cyberwit and are available on Amazon. His work has previously appeared or is forthcoming in Piker’s Press, Ekphrastic Review, Louisiana Literature Review, Burningwood Literary Journal, and Star 82 Review. His chapbooks include Postcards from the Knife-Thrower's Wife (released by Louisiana Literature Press in 2024), RIP Winston Smith (released by Alien Buddha Press in 2024), and The Hum of Geometry; The Music of Spheres (released by Bottlecap Press in 2024). He lives in upstate New York with his partner, poet Catherine Arra. 

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