I had a new poem published today on MacQueen’s Quinterly. And here it is.

Message in a Bottle

I was hoping
you might read this.
Come upon it
unexpectedly

in that journal
with the intriguing name
you often fan through
but never buy

in that famed bookshop
on the avenue
in the city
you now call home.

Or in a dog-eared
and stained anthology
broken by age
on a crowded shelf

between Ammons
and Auden
in the library
just down the block

from the garden
apartment
you share
with your sister.

Or hear it read
on YouTube
accompanied
by viola and cello

by that old poet
whose once sonorous voice
is fading faster
than his face

as you wait for dinner
in that care facility
overlooking
the once scenic lake.

And you might
have the urge
to reach me
one last time

before the meter expires
on the lives
we have borrowed.
But, better perhaps if not.

And, anyway, how?
Still, I hope
you’re reading
this now.