I woke early
this morning,
took down
the two
photo albums
that bookended
the mantelpiece,
and began
to cut your image
from each
of the photos.
I planned to bury
the remains
behind the old
shed—where
once our tire
swing sat.
But mom
caught me at it
and she hasn’t
stopped screaming
since. It’s been
a week
and no one
knows where
you are.
Do you?
I cut
the images
using the small
sharp scissors
you put through
your tiny palm
once. One
of our countless
trips to the emergency
room. What was
it you were
so desperate
to say?
Was god so distracted
he didn’t notice
the difference
in the clay
he held in each hand—
twins that bear
such little resemblance.
A bubble gum light
cuts through
the house.
An official rap at the door.
You’re home.
Deadheading
Steve Deutsch is poetry editor of Centered Magazine and is poet in residence at the Bellefonte Art Museum. Steve was nominated three times for the Pushcart Prize. His Chapbook, Perhaps You Can, was published in 2019 by Kelsay Press. His full length books, Persistence of Memory and Going, Going, Gone, were published by Kelsay. Slipping Away was published this spring. Brooklyn was awarded the Sinclair Poetry Prize from Evening Street Press and has just been published.