Richard King Perkins II is a state-sponsored advocate for residents in long-term care facilities. He lives in Crystal Lake, IL, USA with his wife, Vickie and daughter, Sage. He is a three-time Pushcart, Best of the Net and Best of the Web nominee whose work has appeared in more than a thousand publications.
The earliest hours are the slowest hours
muted
with an absence of incarnadine.
The memory of day
is a saffron stain.
A woman sweats,
unrecognized
in bra and panties
alone on a worn grey corduroy couch
listening to the sleep of her children.
Come morning,
to their expectant faces
she professes love.
You thought I might
have an attachment
to an unused postcard
from a trip we took
to the Black Hills
back in ‘99.
You said you found it
while going through things
to give to Goodwill
and offered to send it
to me
in a padded mailer
or a large envelope.
I laughed
and asked if you
could just put a stamp on it
and give it
to the letter carrier.
It was delivered
a few minutes ago
along with
a credit card statement
and advertising
from State Farm.
I don’t know why
I was surprised to find
that it says
nothing
which pretty
much says it all.
is still covered
in a bunch of fucked up ‘60s tattoos
all blotched and incoherent
and now I’m on the phone
with his son Steve
who can’t understand
why no one will let his old man
into their nursing home.
Steve tells me his father
was a great dad
from the very first day he got released
after the tire-iron murder
and even in the days
when he was still riding rough
Siggy had a street rep
as the one dude
who would share his needle
with anyone who asked.