"an essay about origin stories" by Lee Patterson

an essay about origin stories

my grandfather went away.
my grandmother left soon
after. my sister long before.
denouements live in nests,
in trees chipping away
as the earth follows.
I never made it to the moon
but I’ve been to the altar, been
to the grave & the plural
of grave.
I’ve wept in cars, in the arms
of lovers & mothers,
in the bathroom
with the tattered wallpaper.
I was born casually falling.
the refrigerator hums
as it hides the grapes,
the seeds of melons.
I’ve never learned how to wait
for an ending.
eventually I soon will.

Lee Patterson

Lee Patterson is a poet living in the northeast. His poetry has appeared or is forthcoming in Hobart, Love's Executive Order, Thin Air Magazine, Unbroken, Queen Mob's Teahouse, , and Eunoia Review. His chapbook, I get sad, will be published by Ethel Zine in late 2019. He can be reached at lpatpoet@gmail.com.

Photo Credit: Staff