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Max Heinegg is a Medford-based poet, singer-songwriter, and recording artist. His new collection of poems, Going There, will be released in September 2023 on Lily Poetry Press. His previous collection, Good Harbor, won the inaugural Paul Nemser Prize from Lily Poetry Press. As a singer-songwriter and guitarist, his last five records can be heard on Bandcamp, iTunes, Spotify, and YouTube. His latest record, Through Traveler, adapted 14 poems from the public domain into songs. Born in Cooperstown, NY, he lived in Schenectady, NY before moving to Medford, MA, where he has taught English in the Medford Public Schools since 1998 and is the co-founder and brewmaster of Medford Brewing Company. He is married with two daughters. Connect with him on the web at www.maxheinegg.com.

Max Heinegg

Singing in Cursive

My daughter mocks the radio—
the lover who drags his lyric
through the notes & leaves
no space between. The growling
bleeds into a weeping she
says is extra, each syllable’s
showboat slink toward smooth
indecipherability. She says Halsey
mostly, but boys also make it
labor to interpret what might be
sidewalk pleas because no game,
resigned dreams or drunken well-
wishing after love’s eviction. Maybe
anamnesis is the way a 14-year-old
could know sans experience that
losses are meant to be sung clearly,
in words that do not cling to brittle
melody, an air you do not want to hear
yourself, beautiful only to someone else.

— Max Heinegg

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