What then?

by Roberta Brown

When stinging tears form but fail to fall

When refugee hearts run hard into walls

When ink flows freely but no words come

When the scale is tipped by the heaviest thumb

When arms extend but do not enclose

When even a boxer cannot bear the blows

When full moons rise behind sheets of rain

When even the air smells and tastes of our pain

When a knock strikes the door but no one’s outside

When an envelope opened is empty inside

When the shoe slips on fine but is missing a lace

When smiles of sadness bemark every face

When you finish the book but know less than before

When you want to get out but fear opening the door

When asleep you feel happy but know it’s a dream

When you wake from a nightmare and can’t even scream

When clock hands sound like gunfire, but time somehow stands still

When you wish to God you wouldn’t, but you know you will

When the shame you’ve well hidden peeks out from a sleeve

When you crave faith like food, but still cannot believe—

What then?


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Roberta Brown teaches at Western New Mexico University in Silver City, New Mexico, where she lives with her family and two retired racing greyhounds.