Black skillet
hot oil
pungent the memory
of kindness
heavy
the missing you
even the handle resists
my grip, more sure of yours black
with a scar’s shrugged-off
story
this fisted world intent
on harm
confounded
by your happiness.

 

Mark Thoma’s short fiction and poetry has appeared in journals and anthologies such as the Marin Poetry Center Anthology, Vistas & Byways, Noe Valley Voice, Green Prints, Front Range Review (forthcoming), and XY Files: Poems on the Male Experience. His work as a medical social worker and hiker informs much of his writing.