The Man Who Comes to Visit
1.
Three butterflies flying together
Will bring good luck, though if any of their wings
Touch, the moon will fall on your lover’s house.
2.
Three seagulls flying together means imminent death,
Though if any of their feet touch waves, your lover
Will be out of the house when the moon crashes in.
3.
Dropping a fork means a man will come to visit.
When the man comes he will say he’s your father
And offer you cut rate lessons in stoicism and logic.
4.
Dreaming of acorns foretells pleasant things. But the man
Who visits when you drop your fork will tell you to spurn
Your dreams like he did his love, and not to bother with the moon.
Jon Ballard has worked as an occasional instructor of English at Oakland Community College in Royal Oak, Michigan since 2001. Currently he lives and writes in Mexico City, Mexico. His poetry has previously appeared in journals such as Riverrun, The Old Red Kimono, and Soundings East. He has poems forthcoming this summer in The MacGuffin and SP Quill. (jon_betsy@yahoo.com)