Dodgeball

Jared Pearce

We scramble to the nest, clutch

a ball, and duck, weave, leap

from the dangers we can see.

There is no tingling inspiration

to snatch us out of the way,

no instinct, no time to dissect

our emotions like we do

for the church or the work

or the government; we have

only the danger and the want.

And when we’ve been tagged

it’s clear to all, and we sit on

the border, sweat down

the minutes left in the game.

Jared Pearce wrote Down Their Spears (Cyberwit, 2021) and The Annotated Murder of One (Aubade, 2018). Further, jaredpearcepoetry.weebly.com.