by Ace Boggess
Free Man Cusses Too Much
about the fallen tree, broken pipes,
backed-up sewer line;
about the rising price of cigarettes
(he also smokes too much);
about the politics of ignorance
he observes on the news;
about those he loves who speak
a blithering gospel on what had been a quiet night;
about the heat—yes that, oh yes
(like a soda can, he sweats too much);
about the phone scams &
voices that constantly mispronounce his name;
about when hope for freedom felt like happiness
before the gates, like a second womb, evicted him;
about the poison he was prepared to eat
but saw it had passed its expiration date.
Free Man Tries to Take a Survey
about addiction, a subject on which he is versed.
The bot on the website screens him out as if
he hasn’t worn the proper coat of mud
or stabbed himself in the eye
with a knife made out of dandelions &
spiders. How many others in the pool
have bought a hat to match their stitches?
How many have walked in two left shoes
when leaving jail? The free man laughs
at the absurd fate of not being chosen
to answer questions he hears in his head
during showers or trips to some distant point
between the moon & Uruguay.
***
Ace Boggess is author of eight books of poetry, most recently Tell Us How to Live (Fernwood Press, 2025) and My Pandemic / Gratitude List (Mōtus Audāx Press, 2025). His writing has appeared in Indiana Review, Michigan Quarterly Review, Hanging Loose, and other journals. An ex-con, he lives in Charleston, West Virginia, where he writes, watches Criterion films, and tries to stay out of trouble. His first short-story collection, Always One Mistake, is forthcoming from Running Wild Press.