Insomnia
Head pounding
sleep far away
another night
lying awake
lost in thought
heart racing
feet cold
how many hours
will I count?
Summer programs
days of fun
getting paid to stand around
in this hot field.
Kids go in
and then go out
and then they go in again.
Usually screaming.
(They’re always screaming.)
This is probably a gold mine,
I’m sure there’s so much that I could do with
this blessed premise.
But I have a splitting headache
and I just saw a stray dog chase a kid
that was holding a half eaten pizza
and I think my job description says
that I have to go deal with that.
Stuck on its sharp, definite simmer,
lapsing minutes feign exigency.
Remain patient as a dog at the heel
of someone possessing something
it is not allowed to eat. Salivate
over seconds, attention span
lengthening, dialed in on the one
thing that needs to be ignored.
Time, to pass, needs you to forget
the reminder of itself: the watched
pot steams until evaporation,
the ice of your eye keeping it
always below temperature.
If you told me a year ago
that I’d be standing here now
I would tell you
that you’re crazy
Never in my life
would I expect such a shock
These things only happen on TV
or in the movies
Today I sit here
and I am proven wrong
I wish I could say I’m honored
but we all know I never wanted to be here
The Midwest Region.
Where my crimson roots took shape.
Born into legacy the same soil, I became.
A solo violet broke ground,
nearest my mother’s field—
just a little further down.
This fertile earth birthed leadership and grace.
Small, but MIGHTY,
setting the pACE.
Pearls of wisdom,
intelligence the torch.
100 years of service.
Sisterhood, scholarship, and social action.
A multitude of deeds brought forth.
It’s what we do.
Bond so strong—
EVERLASTING.
Eight states and one province wide.
To be real.
Forever home.
All of my love.
The seventeen years
between love and hate left us
sterile and swollen.
You filled me with hope,
so I ignored red flags.
That’s how I cope
with the itch to pack my bags.
Loved you so deeply;
I knew you were an ocean
but forgot shores drop off steeply.
I drowned in devotion.
I was naive to not realize
you knew how to swim
when you watched waves brutalize,
tear me limb from limb.
Said you didn’t know
how to tread water.
You didn’t mean harm, though;
I guess it was manslaughter.
Feed people who are hungry, but only the white kind of people.
Give drink to those who are thirsty, if they have three professional references.
Clothe people who need clothes, by donating clothes to stores that sell clothes to people who have money to buy clothes with.
Visit prisoners, unless, you know, they did something like really bad.
Visit people who are sick, and make sure to go live on Insta when you do.
Bury people who have died, but expect people to mourn on the clock.
Whatever you do, for God’s sake, save your receipts for tax time,
you’ll thank me later.
Today, I am the flawlessly
intact plump green grape
that slipped from a pair of fingers
and rolled to a stop against a leg
on the turf.
