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Ryan W. Bradley
THE WAY WE DIDN'T HAVE
The way
we didn't have
money
and the sound
of the fire
like people talking
alone in a small group
and a thousand
photographs
polluting my memory
when i sleep
now so far
in the future
it breaks my
heart.
SNOWBOOTS
Every winter
we lost boots
in snowdrifts
and moose
tromped through
our backyard
and snow
was a shelf
right outside
the window
and grass
and cement
disappeared
and lawyers
faxed court orders
about which parent
we would spend
christmas with
and the boots
we found them again
in the spring.
ONE-LINERS ABOUT GOD
They all start
the same
dates, confessions,
one liners about god
pick them out
of my teeth,
my brain, my barren
groin
stitch them up
with dental floss
or faith
or whatever
the kids call it
these days
punch lines
die with ice
and shaken hands
and goodnight kisses
on front porches
but nothing bad
ever ended
with the calm
of my voice
saying it's over.
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