it rains inside your head. there’s a piece
of paper on the floor and you remember
yesterday in a series of blank sticky notes
you think of your father hammering old age
away in the middle of the night. of your sister’s
hand holding your own. someone slams their
car door. angry rain drops crash in your
head. blue men with guns ask you to
take your hands out of your pockets.
you grab your vaping device, offer smoke
to dispel the anger. and then there’s fire. your
life thread pulled away by a trigger. some-
where your sister screams, a neighbor rolls
in bed and a child awakens to wetness.
an officer sprinkles white powder on the
silhouette of your dead body in an attempt
to preserve its sanity. it’s late morning and
rain will not stop pouring from your head
Read More:
1 year after his death by El Cajon police, family of Alfred Olanga vows fight for justice will continue [The San Diego Union-Tribune]
El Cajon police say black man was holding a vape smoking device when officers fatally shot him [The Los Angeles Times]
Leonora Simonovis is a bilingual writer, educator, and mother, living in San Diego, CA. She teaches at the University of San Diego where, along with her students, she explores the intersections of race, class, and gender, as well as issues related to immigration. She likes to visit the border wall to remind herself that it’s possible to dream.
Photo by Ian Dooley.
