12
four poems by Jennifer Bradpiece
Uncharted
for Boris
To keep something safe
give it to a thief
We talk about quick draws and
sharp shooting, a pissing contest—
whose aim is longer, farther out?
We weave a web of intrigue
until we're bound together
while each of our bodies
is sewn up separately
in the opposite corners
of the same eave.
We are cat burglars
pocketing things from
different rooms of the
same house.
Let's compare notes on intricate
laser alarm patterns and the Morse
code music of cracking safes.
Be outlaws on swift horses,
riding from opposite directions
towards the sunset.
Let's be spies on a shared mission,
drink the cyanide if we hold identical
documents in our touching hands.
Rob liquor stores, leave the cash,
and take only cigarettes and booze
for the receding future.
Â