In Lesterville, we know the phrase Recycle, Reuse, and Reduce, but we ignore it.

He swathed his roses in burlap shrouds

You received an invitation.

I want to go back to the start.

Mere tufts of snow now dot
the downed leaves, gleaming

He wondered if it was wrong; probably it was.

I am driving my father halfway across Mississippi so I can watch him die a little more.

The shot came from four hundred yards away, past the stream, up in the trees.

Sip-tease

The infuriating colleague who regularly hints at making a round of teas, but never actually follows through.

still here

‘The judges were blown away by the quality of the submissions.’ Yeah, yeah.

A wolf drags down
the only whitetail
we’ve seen in days

Red string
like rose petals

The bruise cannot be coaxed
from the knee.

“with a gun against your head- you can’t even
speak to god, much less make a bargain.”

“The stars receded like the ocean before a tsunami,” she said, “they went dark, and then, they rushed to earth, suddenly, violently.”

Peak plenitude

A perfectly filled, optimally full load, ready for operation. Dishwasher Nirvana.

“summers’ dahlias

grow tall here”

“Are there more birds? the man thought. Or is there more time to notice them?”

“Fruit bruises to the bone.”