by Edward Michael Supranowicz
to place animals in the margins
i BEGIN TO FILL A BLANK BOOK
i BOUGHT OVER A YEAR AGO
WITH OUTDATED MAPS I never go
anywhere I write the same thing again
printed ALL OVER IT WITH POEMS
SO i CAN TAKE THEM WITH ME
INTO TIME, BUT
TIME IS the NOTHING. YOU CAN’T BRING
THINGS. Only ideas. BUT TOWELS. brain rattles MY LONG
HAND IS OUT OF SYNC. i BEGIN TO UNWIND THE UNSYNCHRONOUS
VERBS GULP
ALONG THE MARGINS, i BEGIN
TO PLACE ANIMALS IN THE MARGINS, [iscribe PACK I—the animal margin
PACK PENCILs—LAST LONGER
IN TIME. i THINK
THIS HAS BEEN A TIP FROM A YOUTUBE VIDEO DAVID LYNCH
POSTED. GOLDEN SUNSHINE. HE SAYS AS OFTEN AS IT DOES
four hundred miles from me. [[[HIGH NOON
IN THE HILLS]]] IF i DO FIND MYSELF
OUT OF TIME. I CAN’T THANK HIM.
[References: David Lynch “Today’s Daily Number Is…” David Lynch Theater (YouTube: August 17, 2020 – Current).]
Kari Flickinger is the author of The Gull and the Bell Tower (Femme Salvé Books) and Ceiling Fan (Rare Swan Press). Her work has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize, Best of the Net, and the SFPA Rhysling Award. She is an alumna of UC Berkeley.
Edward Michael Supranowicz is the grandson of Irish and Russian/Ukrainian immigrants. He grew up on a small farm in Appalachia. He has a grad background in painting and printmaking. Some of his artwork has recently or will soon appear in Fish Food, Streetlight, Another Chicago Magazine, The Door Is a Jar, The Phoenix, and The Harvard Advocate. Edward is also a published poet.