Frances Quinlan
Now That I’m Back
Woman woke up early, heard a scraping near her brain
Imagine when the doc took out the roach, how much she must have changed
Afterwards it dawned on me
I heard noise from every corner and one night ate Raid-seasoned spaghetti

Look up, the metal sign clangs in the wind from a wire
Talk small, if at all, my news is blind and on fire

Only me and big trucks, lost, driving from upstate alone
I came in and she had on that white uniform
I had my first coffee with her that morning at home

Victory, gold-plated over violence
No presence save for memories spiraled and bent in your bedroom
Voltaire's severed head stared me back to bed
You've done your best all the way to the end

Balloons in a foreign park
Shadows of the dance class merge and come apart
Cough in the mirror, I'd forgotten to call
Now that I'm back, we should try again to talk
We should try again to talk
We should try again to talk
We should try again to talk
We should try again to talk