<div class="line">Well, you know,</div>
<div class="line">she said, two weeks</div>
<div class="line">ago, it was our</div>
<div class="line">anniversary, not</div>
<div class="line">that he would know,</div>
<div class="line">or even believe</div>
<div class="line">me if I told him so,</div>
<div class="line">so, you know, I</div>
<div class="line">hatched a plan to</div>
<div class="line">remind him and,</div>
<div class="line">well, to surprise</div>
<div class="line">him too, and so,</div>
<div class="line">anyhow, I worked</div>
<div class="line">it all out in my head</div>
<div class="line">first, had it all in</div>
<div class="line">my mind for weeks,</div>
<div class="line">you know, and it</div>
<div class="line">was even hard not</div>
<div class="line">to tell anybody,</div>
<div class="line">even you. Well</div>
<div class="line">anyhow, I had it</div>
<div class="line">all set, and when he</div>
<div class="line">got home I went</div>
<div class="line">into action, quiet-</div>
<div class="line">like, so he wouldn’t</div>
<div class="line">notice or suspect,</div>
<div class="line">as if he ever did</div>
<div class="line">suspect anything</div>
<div class="line">when he wasn’t</div>
<div class="line">involved, you know.</div>
<div class="line">Well, I had everything</div>
<div class="line">all ready when he</div>
<div class="line">came in the door,</div>
<div class="line">but, you know, I</div>
<div class="line">didn’t want to give</div>
<div class="line">anything away</div>
<div class="line">either, and so I</div>
<div class="line">asked him about</div>
<div class="line">the day he’d had</div>
<div class="line">and, you know,</div>
<div class="line">all the small talk</div>
<div class="line">that we all make,</div>
<div class="line">and I, you know,</div>
<div class="line">really listened hard,</div>
<div class="line">but he hadn’t much</div>
<div class="line">to say, as usual,</div>
<div class="line">just the usual, so</div>
<div class="line">he had a beer or</div>
<div class="line">two while I did</div>
<div class="line">dinner and I’d</div>
<div class="line">gotten a bottle of</div>
<div class="line">wine at the grocery,</div>
<div class="line">well, you know, I</div>
<div class="line">thought that would</div>
<div class="line">be the thing to do,</div>
<div class="line">and he only looked</div>
<div class="line">at me once or twice</div>
<div class="line">and then he asked</div>
<div class="line">me what it cost,</div>
<div class="line">and whether this</div>
<div class="line">was some kind of</div>
<div class="line">celebration or</div>
<div class="line">something here.</div>
<div class="line">Well I almost</div>
<div class="line">couldn’t keep my</div>
<div class="line">smile in, and I said,</div>
<div class="line">you know, that we</div>
<div class="line">could afford to</div>
<div class="line">broaden our horizons</div>
<div class="line">once in a while. He</div>
<div class="line">didn’t say anything</div>
<div class="line">about that, but, you</div>
<div class="line">know, he drank the</div>
<div class="line">wine up real quick,</div>
<div class="line">there wasn’t but half</div>
<div class="line">a glass left for me.</div>
<div class="line">But, that was all right</div>
<div class="line">too, you know, what</div>
<div class="line">I had in mind all</div>
<div class="line">along. So after we ate,</div>
<div class="line">he fell asleep the way</div>
<div class="line">I knew he would,</div>
<div class="line">and I, you know,</div>
<div class="line">could get things set</div>
<div class="line">up the way I’d planned.</div>
<div class="line">I started by spreading</div>
<div class="line">the rose petals from</div>
<div class="line">right in front of his feet</div>
<div class="line">all down the hallway</div>
<div class="line">and right up to the edge</div>
<div class="line">of the bed. All those</div>
<div class="line">flowers cost me plenty,</div>
<div class="line">you know, and then I</div>
<div class="line">set all the candles out</div>
<div class="line">and lighted them all</div>
<div class="line">along the hall and</div>
<div class="line">then, you know, I</div>
<div class="line">turned all the lights</div>
<div class="line">off and made myself</div>
<div class="line">ready. I had gotten</div>
<div class="line">some perfume, not</div>
<div class="line">too expensive, you</div>
<div class="line">know, and a new black</div>
<div class="line">bra and panties, and,</div>
<div class="line">I put a little perfume</div>
<div class="line">behind each of my</div>
<div class="line">ears and between</div>
<div class="line">my breasts, like I’d</div>
<div class="line">seen in the movies,</div>
<div class="line">and even a little</div>
<div class="line">down there, even</div>
<div class="line">though I hadn’t seen</div>
<div class="line"><em>that</em> in any movie,</div>
<div class="line">and then, you know,</div>
<div class="line">when everything</div>
<div class="line">was ready and I was</div>
<div class="line">waiting in the bed,</div>
<div class="line">I called to him,</div>
<div class="line">and he came cursing,</div>
<div class="line">stumbling down the</div>
<div class="line">hall and muttering</div>
<div class="line">and I said, you know,</div>
<div class="line">I’m in here, real</div>
<div class="line">sweet-like, with those</div>
<div class="line">rose petals smelling</div>
<div class="line">wonderful I thought.</div>
<div class="line">Well, but he, you</div>
<div class="line">know, he said, what</div>
<div class="line">is that funny smell</div>
<div class="line">and he asked me if</div>
<div class="line">the electricity had</div>
<div class="line">went off, and I just</div>
<div class="line">smiled to myself,</div>
<div class="line">you know, thinking</div>
<div class="line">I had got it all exactly</div>
<div class="line">right and waiting,</div>
<div class="line">you know, for him</div>
<div class="line">there, and he finally</div>
<div class="line">did come and it was</div>
<div class="line">good for me too</div>
<div class="line">for a change, you</div>
<div class="line">know. Well he fell</div>
<div class="line">asleep on top of me</div>
<div class="line">right after and then,</div>
<div class="line">you know, the next</div>
<div class="line">day, it took me half</div>
<div class="line">the morning, down</div>
<div class="line">on my hands and</div>
<div class="line">knees, to pick up</div>
<div class="line">all those petals.</div>


The Price of Meat

Your Body

Overheard

<div class="line">As he began to read, a thin</div>
<div class="line">thread of mucus started to string</div>
<div class="line">from his nostril. It stretched</div>
<div class="line">almost to his chest and, as he said</div>
<div class="line">his songs, only the most faithful</div>
<div class="line">heard the words they heard.</div><figure class="wp-block-audio"><audio controls src="https://admin.rattle.com/audio/DavisJustice.mp3"></audio></figure>

Cottonwood Blues

House Calls

Homage to Donald Justice

<p class="epil"><em>after the painting by Egon Schiele</em></p>
<div class="line">Only the child,</div>
<div class="line">between his mother’s massive legs,</div>
<div class="line">is clothed.</div>
<div></div>
<div class="line">They both look off</div>
<div class="line">to the right</div>
<div class="line">at something out of sight.</div>
<div></div>
<div class="line">The father, above</div>
<div class="line">and behind, his huge limbs</div>
<div class="line">framing them,</div>
<div></div>
<div class="line">stares—wide-eyed</div>
<div class="line">and proud—directly</div>
<div class="line">at you.</div>
<p style="padding-left: 0px;">Nothing in the background matters.</p>


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June 7, 2021Homage to Donald JusticeWilliam Virgil Davis

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June 7, 2021Homage to Donald JusticeWilliam Virgil Davis

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Overheard by William Virgil Davis

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