Call Me Amalekite

by | Jul 23, 2026

A painting of a small island with a copse of tall dark trees in the center. In the foreground, smaller, a tall figure dressed in white stands on a boat being paddled to the center of the island by a servant. “Isle of the Dead” (1880), Arnold Böcklin. Sourced from Wikimedia, courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Is it enough to
call me Amalekite?
A treacherous soul harbored in
imperfect man. Is evil
so simple that it can be
embodied by a single
name—can it extend
to all I own like Spirit
over darkened waters, poison of
livestock, woman, and child alike?
I asked Adonai what
makes a man whole, and
He told me favor.
Staff aloft and overseeing
battle-blood with heady virtue—
what chance have I against
righteousness? Bury me
in desert sand and black ink,
blotted to hide all I am
from all I could be.

Braiden Ellis

Braiden Ellis

Publab Fellow 2026

Braiden Ellis (he/him) is a PhD student in the English Department at the University of Georgia, where he also works as a graduate teaching assistant and Writing Center consultant. His research centers around Southern Gothic literature, especially in relation to themes of religious community and Native American identity, and he is interested in using elements of horror in his writing to explore the intersection of identity and isolation. His work can also be found in the MSU Roadrunner Review.