you are
an embarrassment
they
have guests who would disapprove
you remind the woman of someone
they
have a reputation to uphold
you make promises
they
have no reason to believe
you make the man angry with the woman
they
don't look at each other
you notice her hands
they are
bruised
good place to catch a
train
this is
when direction
doesn’t matter
when time
doesn’t matter
only that you put
fields forests and towns
between you
and where you were
between you
and what you were
the faster you move
away from it
the smaller it becomes
even your memories
of the woman sleeping
of the child sleeping
of the note’s promise
when she could look
for your
return
Patrick Moran's poems, essays, and translations have appeared in numerous journals include Crazyhorse, The New Republic, The Writer's Chronicle, and Hunger Mountain. His book, "Tell a Pitiful Story," will be published next year. He is currently an associate professor in creative writing at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater.
*/?>
