Almost Blue
(trumpet
and vocals by Chet Baker)
by
Patricia Carragon
my
mood grows jazzy
almost blue
unlike robin’s egg nighttime
or the Adriatic Sea
closer to the wild Baptisia australis
or Ajna’s doorway
non-existent in a Crayola box or on a Pantone
chart
almost blue only
I can see hear or feel
my color has a face a voice a
trumpet’s grief a heartbeat
slow & broken
& eyes ears & hands
articulate more than words
The Handkerchief
he
hides his head in a hoodie
a scarf covers his mouth
skull-like pattern
front tooth missing
his eyes
in
between a threat
or apology
death lurks in the night
love’s being tested
his eyes
more scared
than mine
First published in Orbis International Literary
Journal, #192, June 2020
Patricia Carragon is author of Angel Fire (Alien
Buddha Press), Meowku (Poets Wear Prada), The Cupcake
Chronicles (Poets Wear Prada), and Innocence
(Finishing Line Press). Available on amazon.com.
She also is curator/editor-in-chief of Brownstone
Poets, Brooklyn, NY.