PUSH/PULL ISSUE 21

a geology breaks in half to grow

by Willa Goettling

a geology breaks in half to grow

what qualifies limestone is its 
high quantity of calcium 
limy remains from fossilized marine debris
clams oysters crustaceans 
gregarious in habit,
roll around and accumulate 

the stone is abundant across the globe
but varies in texture, and slightly in composition
Oolite limestone, common in Florida, 
comes from the greek “egg stone”—
tends to have thin concentric layers
analogous to tiny tree rings 
but spherical instead of cylindrical  

cumulative 
they grow and form in regions where
currents are strong, forceful
needing to keep moving in order to keep growing
calcium ooze solidifies under weight
and if there’s a major geological event
(a trauma)
the stone can crystalize into marble
(an un-feeling)
or it might deteriorate
(sentimental) 

effervescing easily in any common acid 
of all the caves, limestone is most common.
Formed by snowmelt and rainwater seeping into the ground
the water combines with underground carbon dioxide—
a product of decaying organic matter
which combines to create carbonic acid. 
The acid eats away at the stone, creating channels
until the channels are large enough 
to move through 

what was buried there?

Limestone is known commonly
for its commercial importance 
as a building material for flooring, building facades, monuments, 
landscaping, something ubiquitous
its high fossil content has long fascinating researchers.
When heated to temperatures of 1,700-1,800 degrees C
its component parts are forcefully teased apart
in a process called dissociation 
the stone is suddenly no longer a geology
but an industry 

dissociation occurs largely to extract calcium carbonate
which has the ability to neutralize or reduce acids
to prevent corrosion, decay
a vital ingredient in the production of concrete, plant fertilizer, glass  
archival paper, official documentation
the ingredients to build an empire and write its history 

a combination of sand, soda ash and limestone 
are cooked together at a high heat to create glass
soda ash speeds up the heating process but causes fragility. 
When scientists tested a prototype of the atomic bomb 
in the New Mexico desert in 1945 
the explosion turned the immediate area of impact into glass
but without the addition of limestone the glass just
dissolves in water
limestone toughens the composition
holds the weight, takes new shapes
with the transparency of glass to learn from  

when limestone deteriorates from natural acids 
turning into a cave, or a system of caves, 
this process is called dissolution: 
The closing down or dismissal of an assembly, partnership, or official body
the dissolution of an empire
time-stamped in geology

___

In a long line of laborers, what happens when the line is pulled
hope and displacement
a catch and release kind of growth where
soda ash cooks the situation so fast we’re left with glass—
a brief mirror reflecting a dream. My own? 
tenuous because the stabilizing element is missing, held up 

on the shore somewhere, in bureaucratic process 
a dance where barnacles perform as county clerks sifting through
personal histories, data recounted, organized, 
Then filed away or regurgitated as a mess of contingencies.
Our existential confusion quantifiable as water toxins 
kicked and tongued, until the ache of desire and pain are entangled 

“What is it like to be someone with many valences?”
Asked And, laying in the summer dark
maybe a coded way of telling me I’m opaque
“not at all” they say, going on to describe the anatomy of a cell 

Valence → the potential for hydrogen bonding based on 
how many atoms are a part of a cell’s structure
etymology of the word traces back to 1425, from Latin, valentia
meaning “strength and capacity” and from the German 1884, valenz
meaning “combining power of an element” 

with more valences, maybe there are
more opportunities for connection
the nature of minerals as growth 
magmatic or sedimentary  

Dikes form when the earth splits 
and new land forms in the open area 
either slow and sedimentary (clastic)
or hot and magmatic 
In both cases 
a geology breaks in half to grow

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Willa Goettling is an artist and educator interested in art as a tool for information sharing and collaboration through the production and distribution of printed materials. Willa received their MFA in Interdisciplinary Book & Paper from Columbia College Chicago. They have participated in residencies and fellowships at EFA Project Space (2023), the Center for Artistic Activism (2020), and the Journal of Artists’ Books (2019-2021). They have taught publishing and print workshops at Parsons, Ugly Duckling Presse, Interference Archive, and the Independent Publishing Resource Center among other organizations across the country.

Next Chapter in this Issue: Instructions for Accumulation Practice and Habitat