The ice dragged down the desk

as dreams were slashed

and nouns were tickled

and bluebells whispered to the pessimistic hawks

 

As dreams were slashed

she called his name

and bluebells whispered to the pessimistic hawks

and he hid his face in negativity

 

She called his name

like stifled greetings

and he hid his face in negativity

‘you’re such a slacker’ she said

 

Like stifled greetings

her sky-lit eyes welcomed the warming rain

‘you’re such a slacker’ she said

and the bubbled rain played Water Music

 

Her sky-lit eyes welcomed the warming rain

‘why would she want to leave him?’

and the bubbled rain played Water Music

a halo in the hands of a demon

 

‘Why would she want to leave him?’

when solutions slid like star-gazed Swallowtails

a halo in the hands of a demon

and all she lost was left to find

 

When solutions slid like star-gazed Swallowtails

she was left alone: fondly antisocial

when all she lost was left to find

but all she’d found was traffic

 

This work received a Gold Award in The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards of 2002.