JESSE LITTLEJOHN

Wanting to be Alone

How much have you given? Nothing.
because the work is in my hands, and I return to my bed
when the work gets tired. It is simple—the remainder rests.
My wife rests too—and I know these people. The guitar returns
when the violin dies down, and the party moves forward
through memories of wrecked ships and dropped tumblers
general worry over wrecked ships. Other things like that.

How much have you made? Very little.
because the worm is in the ground, and I walk over the ground
but do not crush the worm. Who said that? Common law.
The ground has been the temperance of my weight
and the worm inside, it feels my walking,
and bends its mouth to its heart for protection
as we bend our mouths to our hearts when we mourn.






Jesse Littlejohn lives in Woodland Hills, CA. His work has appeared in The Comstock Review, The Bitter Oleander, and elsewhere. He is the founder of Wraiku.com, an online literary community for three line poems. (jessewlittlejohn@gmail.com)



Boxcar Poetry Review - ISSN 1931-1761