Parataxis

by Jared Pearce

When you came in I didn’t
mean to say, You’re a liar—
rather, You’ve come home.

The grungy road still
licking your soles I swept
under my best rug.

And when I meant, You
look so good, I said,
Your hair is growing.

The concrete blocks
scattered in the grass match
the rusted transmission.

I mentioned, You can stay
as long as you like, but
wanted you to hold me

hard, like a dandelion,
a crocus, an ice storm
nailing everything down.

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Jared Pearce's books include Down Their Spears (Cyberwit, 2021) and The Annotated Murder of One (Aubade, 2018). Further: https://jaredpearcepoetry.weebly.com