UnfortunatelyLit By Mark J. Mitchell
The fish police
cannot drown me
in their red coral cell.
I won’t tell them
anything, in spite
of rubber tentacles
sucking my damp flesh.
The words will stay
where I’ve hidden them—
in dark caves, guarded
by my tame leviathan.
When the time comes
I’ll pass the word.
The moon will
know what to do.
Mark J. Mitchell was born in Chicago and grew up in southern California. He is very fond of baseball, Louis Aragon, Miles Davis, Kafka, and Dante. He lives in San Francisco with his wife, the activist and documentarian, Joan Juster. He has published two novels, three chapbooks, and two full-length collections. His latest releases are Roshi San Francisco (Norfolk Publishing) and Starting from Tu Fu (Encircle Publications). A meager online presence can be found on Facebook, Twitter, and his website.
Why we chose this piece: The entire poem just works for us. This nod to Diane di Prima works very well. We love the tone, the way it flows, the surrealism, and the word choice. From beginning to end, it held our attention. We can’t get over the last two lines. THE MOON. WILL KNOW WHAT TO DO. Perfect.
