issue 7
// poetry
In Case of Fire
by David A. Goodrum
Alert: I’ve painted over
the reflectors in the road
that indicate a nearby hydrant.
I’ve removed the fiberglass
blanket that could smother
a pan of smoldering grease.
I’m a windbreaker brought
to a flood. A teaspoon scraping
an ice-covered river. Bare earth
dreaming of mud. My T-shirt warns
Large Dip Ahead. Look, surfaces
are often uneven. Drainage happens.
Followed by dust. Now I contemplate
the leftover water in the aspergillum
after the priest sprinkles the coffin.
about the author // David A. Goodrum
| David A. Goodrum is the author of Abrupt Edges (Bass Clef Books, 2025), Vitals and Other Signs of Life (The Poetry Box, 2024) and Sparse Poetica (Audience Askew, 2023). Recent journal publications have appeared in The Orchards Poetry Journal (which awarded his poem “Winter Inquisition” a Pushcart Nomination), Cirque, and Triggerfish Critical Review, among others. David lives in Corvallis, Oregon, and is the current president of the Oregon Poetry Association. See more at www.davidgoodrum.com. |
Instagram: @goodrum
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wildscape. literary journal 