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Release
Paul Willis

You pigeons who have left
your droppings in the stands
just behind home plate,
was it a walk-off grand slam
that excited you so?

—
Paul Willis has published eight poetry collections, the most recent of which are Somewhere to Follow (Slant Books, 2021) and Losing Streak (Kelsay Books, 2024). Individual poems have appeared in Poetry, Light, Southern Poetry Review, and the Best of American Poetry series. He is an emeritus professor of English at Westmont College and a former poet laureate of Santa Barbara, California, where he lives with his wife, Sharon, near the old mission.

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