The Distance Between: poems by Julie Valin

The Distance Between reflects a woman balancing her own wild and reckless heart with the responsibilities of marriage and motherhood. It is both the drawing together and the completely falling apart; the slow dancing in the kitchen and the slamming of the doors. To write lines about the one you love such as "and what we have/isn't called sex anymore" and balance it with the simplicity of "Coltrane on the stereo/red wine and mac and cheese/and a quiet bliss" takes raw guts, which Julie has plenty of, as she opens the window to these joyous and painful truths.