by CL Bledsoe
My mother’s ghost wants to know
why I haven’t given her grandkids.
I say, “Mom, I have a daughter.” “But
where is she?” Mom asks. “At her
mother’s,” I say. I can’t tell if Mom
shakes her head or that chill
is from leaky windows. It’s hard
for her to control her vapor. “You’ve
liked her, the hundreds of times
you’ve met her,” I say, unsure how
this will be received. “Is she like you
or her mother?” she asks. I know
she doesn’t remember my ex. “She’s
like you,” I say. “Good,” she says.
Raised on a rice and catfish farm in eastern Arkansas, CL Bledsoe is the author of more than twenty-five books, including the poetry collections Riceland, Trashcans in Love, Grief Bacon, and his newest, The Bottle Episode, as well as his latest novels Goodbye, Mr. Lonely and The Saviors. Bledsoe co-writes the humor blog How to Even, with Michael Gushue located here: https://medium.com/@howtoeven His own blog, Not Another TV Dad, is located here: https://medium.com/@clbledsoe He’s been published in hundreds of journals, newspapers, and websites that you’ve probably never heard of. Bledsoe lives in northern Virginia with his daughter.
Emerge Literary Journal 