by Arun Kapur
Rise of Skywalker, Bridgton Twin Drive-in
Drop the tailgate, blankets, pillows,
peepers and the welcome reel play
black and white, battered sixties station wagon,
still watching Star Wars
one hand on your beard like Obi Wan Kenobi,
you mention candy, from seat to seat
our children rocket, swoop frantic
to taste something other than home,
this drivein movie rerun,
reborn. Fulldark,
the rutfield universal,
headlamps hyperspace streak
passing cars so distant
they might be planets eager for life
tuning dented radios rejoicing
when a rebel voice breaks in,
Lucasfilm, skipworlds
future long past bedtime
movie finally over and our son
has fallen asleep on my lap.
I wrap a blanket around him
like carbonite, freeze
the resting dark, leave the back
seats folded down, driving
body steady, all the way home.
As children we begged to ride jumpseat
one simple turn enough to reverse polarity
sweet novelty, fresh the destination
how soft the road becomes
how new the story these old stars tell.
Katherine Hagopian Berry (she/her) has appeared in the Café Review, Rise-Up Review and Glass: Poet’s Resist, among other places. Her first collection, Mast Year, was published in 2020. She is a poetry reader for the Maine Review.
Arun Kapur is a mental health advocate that uses the medium of the arts to raise awareness of stigmas and well-being. Enigmatic. Charismatic. Passionate. Lover of life and all truth that binds us together. He believes that through art, life is created. Twitter: @arunkapur333.