Visit Fear

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I.

I have two dogs, three cats, and four horses. Some of the dogs and cats sleep with me. I love that. One of the horses is half blind and no longer can be ridden. My second husband has been dead 26 years. I live alone. I’d rather stay with my grandchildren at their house than have them at mine. I don’t like rules. I own a 9mm pistol and know how to use it. I said to my high school boyfriend, “we’ve lived three quarters of a century.” He didn’t want to hear it, but I’m not afraid. I now ride horses with a passion. The barista says, “we’re closing in one minute.” We go onto the street and talk near my car for longer than expected. We smell the weed the two young baristas are smoking on the front stoop of the coffee house. I feel his aged body warm next to mine, smell our youth seeping into a hug. Rain so gentle it hurts. I get in my beloved red Porsche SUV and drive back to my waiting three cats, two dogs, and a warm bed smelling of tonight.

II.

I wanted to touch her. So, 

I stopped her story to ask 

a question by putting my 

fingertips into the palm of her

misshapen, arthritic hand 

for a moment, or slightly longer.

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Garrett Phelan is the author of the micro-chapbooks Unfixed Marks and Standing where I am (Origami Poetry Project 2014 and 2016). His poems have appeared in a variety of publications including Potomac Review, Word Riot, Off the Coast, Ekphrastic Review, and Leaping Clear. He is a Pushcart Prize nominee.

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