Louis
The force of life crackles
through the care-worn
hands of my great grandfather.
He was never able to feel the
voltage of existence like the rest of us--
just let it dance over his calloused skin,
buried it down deep, and covered it in
lattice like apple pie in a deep freeze.
The Grand Canyon could never beat
the sight of the sun setting over Lake of the Ozarks,
the feel of a dog’s fur under his fingers,
the sound of my great grandmother’s laughter.
Life to a grandfather is one long boat ride:
some days there is fishing, and some days
there are snipers on the shore, but
the water will always welcome him home.
through the care-worn
hands of my great grandfather.
He was never able to feel the
voltage of existence like the rest of us--
just let it dance over his calloused skin,
buried it down deep, and covered it in
lattice like apple pie in a deep freeze.
The Grand Canyon could never beat
the sight of the sun setting over Lake of the Ozarks,
the feel of a dog’s fur under his fingers,
the sound of my great grandmother’s laughter.
Life to a grandfather is one long boat ride:
some days there is fishing, and some days
there are snipers on the shore, but
the water will always welcome him home.
Lin Godfrey is a queer poet and college student from Missouri studying English, philosophy, and religion. Friends have described them as a “sexy goth cowboy” and voted them most likely to jump off a moving train. Lin once drove to Iowa by accident and has yet to live it down. Their biggest dream in life is to have a big front porch to whittle on at sunset.