In a Low Mood
By Justin Hyde


on the couch with a beer

your mind stuck somewhere
between quicksand
and lead paint.

your son
playing with matchbox cars
on the linoleum floor
of the kitchen
suddenly announces:
look daddy!
look at me!

up to the tops of his legs
like a fisherman's
waders

he's gotten
your work boots
on his tiny feet

trudging toward you
with the concentration
of warfare.

it's nothing much

i'm sure every father has seen it.

but you smile

truly smile

for the first time this week.


- - -
My name is Justin Hyde. I live in Iowa where I work as a correctional officer.