Blink and there it disappears.
Lonely, cold memories left with
honest recollections of too many affairs
Where you wonder whether or not to volunteer.
You take a deep breath and sigh,
wondering if you need to call that locksmith.
Wondering if you need to change for the fifth
time––why are the neighbors playing Aerosmith?
Pause, step back and roll your eyes.
Concern yourself only with the goodbyes
not with the moments you lost to the pain
they gave and needed you to dignify.
It’s their fault for failing with that birdbrain
scheme, not yours. Don’t pour acid into the rain,
but enjoy your peace and return to the mundane
ritual of passing simple regards and stop
only for your pleasure to begin with.
Record the days lost on your laptop.
Plot only for your next cough drop.
Earn your paper and let them eavesdrop.
About the Creator
Jelani Saeed
Hi! My name is Jelani Saeed. I'm a black queer writer specializing in Afrofuturism featuring black queer leads. Hope you enjoy my work! I write poetry and prose (original and fanfiction). I also have a website: dabblesofapisces.com
Keep reading
More stories from Jelani Saeed and writers in Poets and other communities.
Inshallah
Istanbul is a city bristling with life, a place where past and present, sacred and profane, intertwine under the watchful gaze of the Sultan Ahmet Mosque. As I explore this crossroads of cultures with Maya, my nine-year-old niece and the daughter of my late brother-in-law Frank, and my wife Nadia, Frank's sister, I find myself on a journey not just through Istanbul's history, but also into the depths of my own beliefs. Staying with Maya and her mother Elvan, my sister-in-law, I begin to see the city anew through their eyes, and to understand why James Baldwin said it "revived" him.
By Geoffrey Philp 4 days ago in Wander
Comments
There are no comments for this story
Be the first to respond and start the conversation.