KEITH KING MEORIAL POETRY
FIRST PLACE
The Stars Were Enough Cassidy Wong
A meteor shower tonight, said my dad It was late Late enough that the fluorescent of my room Long replaced the light between my blinds Casting odd shadows onto the clutter A pandemic left in its wake Leaving it behind, I pad out to the driveway Only in t-shirt and shorts December winds breezing past Toes shivering against biting gravel First, I look Nothing looks back Above is expectedly black But then a dot of light flickers Saturn Her ringlets glistening A primadonna Another and another and another flit into view Not waiting expectantly for a finale The troupes of constellations are content with their own show Debuting on unusually clear night, perfect for staring Standing on the driveway, in a jacket this time Bouncing from one foot to another A frenzied dance halted only by the view Stars multiply two fold Five fold Ten fold I am reminded that it’s been ages, years even that I’ve looked at them like this The April Perennial 42
