wild on purpose

by Mikko Harvey

​
​At first, I believed
the most glamorous act 
was to be beautiful and 
unhappy. Then, when I 
realized I was not 
beautiful, I decided
the next most 
glamorous act was to be
unhappy in a beautiful 
place. Then, when
my cat died, I realized
that glamor had lived 
in his vocal chords
all along. It had been 
a small thing --
a thing made of time — 
tucked neatly inside.
Now I know
I can never be glamorous.
I can only sit
in this wooden chair,
in my room, making lists
 
or step outside
and become the cat.

---

Mikko Harvey is the author of the poetry collections Let the World Have You (House of Anansi, 2022) and Unstable Neighbourhood Rabbit (House of Anansi, 2018). He lives in Western Massachusetts.

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