Hello! I’ve been writing a short story, but if I ever want to get it published, I won’t be able to post it here. Instead, I challenged myself to write a happy poem for a workshop my friend was hosting. I currently have four poems that are simultaneous submissions to various journals, but they’re all abysmal. Well, maybe not abysmal. They have hope and excitement in them, but they cover extremely difficult topics.
This sonnet, on the other hand, contains a series of creatures, actions, and items that comprise my personal place of peace, or, create my sanctuary. Enjoy!
Sanctuary as a Sonnet
…..
Corydoras dart to the tank’s torpid surface, a chirp of air stolen from another world.
Plentiful, homely weeds rustle in the wind just outside the front window, and
precipitation overflows from the gutter as if on a curtain of rain chains, a waterfall-turned-wall
that creates an island sanctuary in suburban inferno. Andi’s black and tan hound
face perpetually asks for permission to love, for hints of devotion requited. She worships
her oversized neon tennis ball, sleeps with two paws covering the tip
of her nose when her blood flow cannot match the thermostat. The bookshelf never remains
organized, not when Mazikeen’s black fur coat anchors her to furniture’s shadows,
turns her into an assassin of books, a professional trinket killer; even cameras reflect
the mystery of her spilling right pupil. George’s bright orange coat protects him from any
thoughts, so they exist healthily together, bonded through the mutual destruction of FIV.
My lover falls asleep under the glow of permanent Christmas lights on the thrifted
leather couch, and I dream about how he twists the curly hair behind his ear
during conversations he’s excited about. He looks at me and his eyes shine.
A Penny For Your Books 
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