When You Grow Up

I’d rather be a collapsed flower drenched in rainwater; succumbed to the well
where wishes weld
winning whims. though not alone
as the barren heart
of anti-democratic men but with a plenitude
of carbon based efforts trying to truncate
all that besmirches goodness;
in the nests of the good above our heads,
and the insufferable loss beneath the silent dirt.

____

The featured image accompanying this poem, entitled ‘Red Over Cities’, have been used with the permission of artist Patricio Betteo.

Dr. Ernest Williamson III

Dr. Williamson has published creative work in over 550 journals. His poetry has appeared in journals such as The Oklahoma Review and Review Americana. His artwork has appeared in journals such as The Tulane Review and The Columbia Review. He is an Assistant Professor of English at Allen University and his poetry has been nominated for the Best of the Net Anthology three times.

Get the Most Recent Stories from Rollick

A weekly newsletter featuring new and emerging writers.

More from Rollick

Upon Impact

In the bedroom they used to share, the real estate agent opens the blinds, letting in the mid- morning sun, then walks toward the desk

Paper Boat

Three walls of the room are made of tin, but on the fourth side a polished floor opens, running like fabric into curtains of lace,

Blind Devotion

I jack off to one of the pictures of her I have saved on my computer and after I’m done I send her a message to tell her