Joshua Bennett
Retire whom? I am the unrestrained
fleet of bone which cancels your shame.
The deadliest squadron of five.
Every time this cannonball dives
into airborne thrust it is always
all over, playboy,
& don’t you forget it.
Before pen or pot handle
unlearned you the splendor of blood,
I taught bully’s breath to genuflect,
plowed your father’s truancy
into that punk's front teeth
like a rust
darting through snow.
C’mon, now.
Who knows you better
than the black of your hand?
Who held you down
when the whole world went
spaghetti western & you
were six bullets short of a coffin’s kiss?
Exactly.
Now look at you.
All emotional,
as if there was ever a choice.
As if all this glory
was up for discussion.