Raised on the blue-collar streets of Houston, Texas, R.T. tries to maintain the balance of humor and raw temper the street corner life requires. His work has appeared in Blue Collar Review, Santa Fe Literary Review, Pedestal Magazine, Misfit, Trajectory, The Alembic, and Comstock Review. Internationally, it has been published in Canada, Wales, Ireland, Scotland, New Zealand, Portugal, and Antarctica.
THE MOON REMINDS
I walk a muddy street,
boot tread impressions
brutal, random in February stealth.
Sliver of a moon dices
high fog, pitching oak limbs.
A north wind chills footsteps,
exposed layers of sweatshirt and sweater
beneath a borrowed bomber jacket.
Pausing for the parking turn of a car,
I shrug a shivering laugh, remembering
Mother’s stories of collision death or kidnap.
At the apartment door
I step back to the sidewalk, that cold tunnel,
center my eyes on Jupiter, waiting for Saturn.
By the news—mechanics made right,
we’ll return to the moon.
R.T. is reachable via email at rcastl2335@aol.com.