Hope Against Hope

Howie Good

Howie Good is the author of more than a dozen poetry collections, including most recently The Death Row Shuffle (Finishing Line Press), The Trouble with Being Born (Ethel Micro Press), and Gunmetal Sky (Thirty West Publishing). "Hope Against Hope" is in Short Circuit #05, Short Édition's quarterly review.

I have seen this movie before,
I know how it ends, with troops in the streets,
and the charred bones of buildings,
so I turn away from the ruthless images,
and, just as quietly as I can, lean
on the railing of the back deck
and wait for the gray fox to appear
from the dark tangled underbrush
into an evanescent strip of bright sunlight.

You might also like…

Poetry

Slice of Life 1 min

Paper and Ink

Mountain Nose

She didn't think herself a racist. She'd had black school friends, worked with black women at the restaurant, and watched Oprah daily.

But when her seven-year-old, white daughter brought home a ... [+]

Poetry

Contemporary Nature 1 min

Bird Soup

Vera Soltes

Have you met the bird at the end of the rainbow?
I heard it gives great advice.
Every problem you ... [+]

Poetry

Absurd Humor 5 min

80-Year-Old Hero

Elanor Lin

It was a muggy morning at Cozy Cottage Nursing Home, and the arthritis was bothering me pretty bad. Hurt to move. Hurt to type. Still does, matter of fact. That's why, when they asked me for an ... [+]