That First Year, Without Joe, a poem by Emalisa Rose at Spillwords.com

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That First Year, Without Joe

Emalisa Rose·September 30, 2021

Poetry English

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That First Year, Without Joe

written by: Emalisa Rose

He’d carry the red plaided
blanket, inviting the lot of us
to “come sit for storytime” along
with s’mores and some chitter chat.

Jane brought the chips and Aunt
Tina’s paella, never revealing
the secret ingredients.

Dodge ball and fireflies, watching
the stars draw our names on the
sky ceiling; this place we made camp
every year.

But Joe should have been here.

Joe with his blanket, right here,
cancer free, in our annual photo.

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Emalisa Rose

When not writing poetry, Emalisa Rose enjoys crafting with macrame and drawing with charcoals. She walks with a birding group on weekends. She volunteers in animal rescue, processing cat/dog adoptions at a local shelter. Her latest work is "Ten random wrens," pubished by Maverick Duck Press.

Suman Pokhrel

Suman Pokhrel is a Nepali poet, lyricist, playwright, translator, and artist. He debuted in 1999 with a poetry collection and has since published works, including translations of Shakespeare and global poets. His poems are translated into many languages and taught across South Asia. A two-time SAARC Literary Awardee, he also received Asia’s Inspiring Poet Award and was named Author of the Month by Spillwords in June 2023. Beyond literature, he works as a freelance consultant in socio-economic research, rural development, entrepreneurial development and creative writing. He began his career in Nepal’s civil service and later worked with international NGOs. He holds degrees in Science, Law, Business Administration, and Economics.

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I looked between herself and the girls. Jesus Christ, I said in my own mind, Mental Mick is after stealing all my crayons that I’d been hoarding for myself there before the break...

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