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Putting the Day on Hold
K. A. McGowan

Lately it seems I can only manage
pending appointment poems.

Waiting on my annual physical,
an oil change at the Hyundai dealership,
the reason for suspicious withdrawal
from my checking account,
a six o’clock morning ultrasound
for an abdominal aortic aneurysm
or triple A, the tech calls it,
a hand wax at Todd’s Car Wash.

Others read their smart phones, and I write.
It’s usually quiet like the library was
before the stacks became the playground.

A loudspeaker or a real voice calls

my name
silver Elantra
hacked account corrected
normal
silver Elantra.

Normal?

—
Born and raised in Scranton, Pennsylvania, K. A. McGowan lives in Duson, LA. His first full-length poetry collection, Pangaea, was published in 2022 by Kelsay Books.

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