Harp & Altar
POETRY
Jason Michael Bacasa
from There Was Electricity
Feather Pillow

Lynn Crawford

Elise Harris

Norman Lock
from Pieces for Small Orchestra

Eugene Marten

Miranda Mellis

Feather Pillow
Jason Michael Bacasa

There was an entire other sky inside of the pillow case. And various bodies of water. They were even beginning to develop forms of transportation.

Arthur collected every pillow in the house. He created a whole universe from them. Strewn across his bedroom floor were six entities, all of which had a written language of their own.

 

Arthur opened up one pillow case over another. He listened closely as one language leaked onto the next.

 

I am realistic that a sphere of influence will exist. But, I should hope that no form of colonialism or imperialism will exist in such a world.

The three paragraph essay was supposed to be on England’s expansion into Africa.

 

Ms. Petruzzo put a D at the top of the page and then dialed the phone.

“Not only did I not write the paper, but I’m not even sure that a Eurocentric viewpoint is a fair or appropriate way to approach history.”

Arthur’s father made funny faces into the phone. Dizzy Gillespie made him laugh the hardest.

 

Arthur lay in the aisle of JCPenney. He had tried every pillow in the department.

“Harder. It has to be harder, Mom. I can’t take the risk that life might exist inside.”

The retail associate shrugged her shoulders. Arthur closed his eyes.

 

Arthur stuck the bread knife inside and pulled down. He gathered the feathers in a pile and set them on fire.

“Stupid civilization. Stupid.”

The two boys nearby kept fishing. One of them caught a perch.

 

“When I put the ashes in your hand, you can say whatever you want, just make sure you say you’re sorry.”

The boy said he was sorry. Then his brother.