Testify by Douglas Manuel

Author:Douglas Manuel
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Red Hen Press
Published: 2017-10-15T00:00:00+00:00

Razor blades for breakfast,

washed down with aftershave.

Clean upper lip.

Need something to stop me

from looking like my dad.

Need something to stop

me from acting like my dad.

Can’t help but walk

the way he used to before

his legs were amputated. Difficult to

swag-stroll on two prosthetics,

but he tries, leans to the side

when he drives

those electric wheelchairs at Wal-Mart.

Take him there,

and I can end up anywhere:

Dougie, I got me a taste for a shake.

Stop by Big Boy’s.

Anderson is small enough

to cross in fifteen minutes.

Trust me. I don’t know

how many times

I’ve done it.

Rable Avenue to Columbus.

Riding by the high school.

It’s not Dad’s, nor mine.

The three schools combined.

What year? We don’t remember.

Factories gone, too. Vacant lots,

dandelions working the cracks

in the cement. Windows

full of hairline fractures. Guide

Lamp and Delco Remy made this city

flush with greenbacks

long before crack made pockets

fat. I left town in 2004.

Never felt like home until I was walking

out the door.

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