Waiting for a Letter
No words in the mail, no words
onscreen, nada in the tête-à-tête
of fingers embracing in the waiting room.
Silence disperses us like tear gas.
I won’t weep for the speechless two of us
distant as brake lights from the engine.
Here’s to hoping. I’m circling
empty space where words should be.
Are your words not on speaking terms
with mine? Are my words lies I tell myself?
This quiet wears me down. I need
your godless words to lift mine onto the altar.
Ace Boggess is author of six books of poetry, most recently Escape Envy. His writing has appeared in Indiana Review, Michigan Quarterly Review, Notre Dame Review, Hanging Loose, and other journals. An ex-con, he lives in Charleston, West Virginia, where he writes, watches Criterion films, and tries to stay out of trouble. His forthcoming books include poetry collections, My Pandemic / Gratitude List from Mōtus Audāx Press and Tell Us How to Live from Fernwood Press, and his first short-story collection, Always One Mistake, from Running Wild Press.
