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Night With Open Mouth: Two Poems by Zack Lesmeister

how much time / does the wind give us? / do we still run? / who sends the wind? / does it carry the bombs? / or do they come after?

Poetry | Poetry Tuesday, poetry
January 12, 2021

WARNING

cho bà ngoại

nothing like war / scares me / when she first came / here / it was winter / st. louis / snow /
everywhere / the sirens went off / loud / no crying / just bombs / grab the children / pack the bags
/ we have to leave / the bombs / it’s always / the bombs / they follow / everywhere / i thought we
left / everything / in vietnam / they followed us / here / an american / says it’s a tornado /
warning / what’s a tornado? / are they here? / how much time / does the wind give us? / do we
still run? / who sends the wind? / does it carry the bombs? / or do they come after? / before the
storm? / or after? / what comes after?


cho bà ngoại = for my grandma
cho bà = for you
ngoại = foreign

Night With Open Mouth

the walk home, the men shout
catcalls like false prayer.
This sacrilege, I know
too well, but here I am
always draped for a ball. I’m Overness.
Pendavis.
left the house. Adonis.
LaMay.
kissed myself goodbye
in the mirror. Pendavis.
My femme is too good to be true.
Saint Laurent, –of course.
Today is no different, They saw me
night unhinges
They saw me
its jaw, swallows one of my kin. Another missing.

and they all liked me.