Tanka Writing Roundtable • Spring 2024
Dr. Randy Brooks

Tanka

by
Josh Lowe

I brought a flower home
to die
in the last chapter
of a book
we never finished

sometimes
my life is like a movie
an unremarkable movie
that i’m watching
in the dark

looking at the stars
on a trampoline
far beyond the city lights
why is it so clear?
when I can’t remember yesterday

we called it a Fiesta!
with homemade nachos
and nothing else but us
I look back fondly
with a fridge full of food

there was once a weird little boy
who liked what he liked
and knew who he was
how on earth
could he have been me

a cold bench
wrought iron craftsmanship
a perfect place
to tell me
“It’s over”

no holy book
or feathered prude
to comfort me
just a gravestone or two
to keep me cozy