Cerrato & Zelig — February 2025

Dora J. Zelig and Carlotta Cerrato traded art and words. Carlotta shared this untitled image with Dora:

In response, Dora wrote this poem:

Sink Deeper

Layers of clothing, jewelry, armor, and other wears—the world

Stop and protect
Feel a softer hue

No fears
No marvels
No knowledge of sipping
Or how to feed ourselves cheese

Finally, belong
To experience life
As the mountain
Apollonian everpresence

Dots and haze
Envelope all answers
To our game show
Humoring the higher beings

Eyes open
Thoughts of ant hills
Housing sticks, pebbles, and old raisins
Tension released

* * * * *

Dora shared this poem with Carlotta:

Unnamed #One

Yes, some pain does make you wiser
Some lingers well beyond its years
Evolving until your mind prays for a lobotomy
Because it was robbed so rough

It hits you like dirty creek water 
To numb your tired, your poor, your shriveled fetal prayers

Never cleansing your mind nearly enough to quiet you
Only splashing soil onto your near-still-beating heart

It would be much simpler to lay back
Be taken —
Primarily unconcerned with filth and hornet’s nests
(Oh Mother, how it stings)

So we put our blindfolds on
A great escape in fleeting pleasures wound in ivy and dripped in honey

Sometimes it takes just one of many 
To arise from slumber
To summon the horns

Cry out loud to the people
This is such a life but a life just the same — 
And dear ones, you must remain sad and broken for umpteenth year’s time
In order to become no such coward soul

In response, Carlotta made this image, titled “No such coward soul”: