Welcome back poetry lovers! Another fellow poet worth celebrating is Charles K. Carter, whose newest collection, If the World Were a Quilt , was recently released by Kelsay Books. Please enjoy two poems from the book, "Secrets" and "Venom." Thank you, Charles, for sharing your work!
Secrets
About two blocks down the street from our house,
headed towards the parks by the lake,
I got used to arguing with him and
always having to distract our yippy Shih tzu
from the beautiful old golden retriever
sitting on her porch.
She had earned her relaxation.
She had the secrets of old age.
She had the secrets of life.
She had the secrets of love.
One day she was gone.
A quiet grief overwhelmed me.
I wanted to speak to her,
to know her wisdom.
I wanted her to take my paw and tell me my fortune:
would he ever love me in the way I loved him?
headed towards the parks by the lake,
I got used to arguing with him and
always having to distract our yippy Shih tzu
from the beautiful old golden retriever
sitting on her porch.
She had earned her relaxation.
She had the secrets of old age.
She had the secrets of life.
She had the secrets of love.
One day she was gone.
A quiet grief overwhelmed me.
I wanted to speak to her,
to know her wisdom.
I wanted her to take my paw and tell me my fortune:
would he ever love me in the way I loved him?
Venom
It warms like the Florida sun soaking into my skin,
swimming faster and faster to feed toxins to all the cells inside.
It burns like the Minnesota cold
creeping up through my veiny tributaries,
climbing peaks and valleys to reach my sacred heart summit.
It calms like my Iowa youth flashing before my eyes –
first kisses, swing sets, Mamma’s humming in the kitchen.
Don’t tell Mamma that I was trying to die again.
swimming faster and faster to feed toxins to all the cells inside.
It burns like the Minnesota cold
creeping up through my veiny tributaries,
climbing peaks and valleys to reach my sacred heart summit.
It calms like my Iowa youth flashing before my eyes –
first kisses, swing sets, Mamma’s humming in the kitchen.
Don’t tell Mamma that I was trying to die again.
Charles K. Carter is a queer poet from Iowa who currently lives in Oregon. They share a home with their artist husband and their spoiled pets, and enjoy film, yoga, and live music. (Melissa Etheridge is their ultimate obsession.) Carter, who holds an MFA in writing from Lindenwood University, is the author of If the World Were a Quilt (Kelsay Books) and Read My Lips (David Robert Books), as well as several chapbooks. Charles is on Instagram @ckcpoetry .