For each day of National Poetry Month one of our fellows will explore the breadth of poetry in three ways: through a question from another fellow, through a poem and through a writing prompt, #writetoday.

---

[QUESTION]

Brynn Saito asks, Do you believe in ghosts?

Monica Ong answers, I do. My family’s ghosts haunt me, bind me to intricate histories, and challenge me to ask difficult questions about where we’re going and when we’ll finally be home. I don’t go looking for them, but they often find me, leaving their fragments and traces in small objects, smells, and strange empty spaces. When I write I rely on them often, sometimes to feel less alien, sometimes to expand, other times to ask for a good recipe. Despite being prone to exaggeration, they do tell great stories, and inspire narrative elements in my work. I just wish they weren’t so camera shy.

---

[POEM]

Click on the image below to see Monica’s work on Seneca Review.

---

[BIO]

Monica Ong is a literary hybrid who explores medical narratives through the overlap of poetry, art, and technology.