Shuly Xóchitl Cawood
Shuly Xóchitl Cawood lives in Johnson City, Tennessee, where she writes, teaches, and doodles—all while raising two parti poodles and a dwindling number of orchids. Her latest poetry collection, I Am Trying to Love the Whole World, is forthcoming in fall 2026.
Because I became allergic to chocolate when I was seventeen
because a rash spread on my chest when I ate mole sauce at Sanborns; because acne populated my face every time I drank hot cocoa; because I believed it to be easy to give up something I loved
June 2026Poem In Which I Fail To Teach My Dog How To Fetch
Here, I call, using the sweet voice the vet psychiatrist recommended, not the hell no one I prefer. Here, I call again.
August 2023My Mother Says She Does Not Know How To Cook
“How did you make this?” she always asks. “A recipe,” I tell her. No magic trick. No skill. Just buying ingredients, following directions, not varying from what I’m supposed to do.
December 2021Inheritance
My great-aunt was not the type of lady to smoke / out on the porch. No, she lit up in her living room, and up / and down the stairs, and in her bedroom on hot / Mississippi nights with the windows thrown open.
May 2020Has something we published moved you? Fired you up? Did we miss the mark? We’d love to hear about it.
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