alex salinas

Billboard

SERIOUS INJURY? on a billboard screams across
The clouded sky
Clouded sky screams through Adam Smith’s
Megaphone
Adam Smith’s megaphone threatens the promise of
Death
Death promising every day
Every day Death the banker
The Banker in his shiny blue suit
A man isn’t made of much if
His suit shines, my grandfather said
Grandfather favored a denim jacket in his
Final days
Left me his jacket, which doesn’t fit
Many things don’t fit anymore
Time leaves me ill-suited
Checked my tongue this morning to see if
Español still lacks
But your master’s in English, señor, it reminded
And English Literature, I nearly corrected
Today I bought Hemingway’s
Death in the Afternoon at a
Used bookstore
I don’t feel used one bit
Feeling and fact aren’t the same, I heard Grandfather say
“I don’t believe in ghosts,” I spat back
Except this poem lolls upon the dead
Here’s how you trap ghosts in 3 easy steps:
Shut eyes
Picture hate / love
Embrace
At the gas pump earlier, the screen yakked at me
Reality vaguely disappointed
Returned home to find my tank less than empty
Only then did work begin
Marveling at birds screaming across
The beautifully clouded sky.

Alex Salinas holds an M.A. in English Literature and Language from St. Mary's University, and is the author of two full-length poetry collections from Hekate Publishing: WARBLES and DREAMT, or The Lingering Phantoms of Equinox. Recent publications include Tilted House Review, Gnashing Teeth Publishing, Dissident Voice, Chiron Review, Pilgrimage Magazine, The Beatnik Cowboy, and As It Ought To Be Magazine.