The hierophant
four of the cards were red and black suits
diamonds and hearts and clubs
and yes spades
I wanted to dig in this tender soil
to plant a notice of desire
it was more than four, it might have been eight
I might have capped it at eight
daydreams and nostalgia
and it's really four years and two high
cheek bones and collared evils
sorry to bother
sorry that
I didn't
grow up
until later
The Hierophant turned a blind eye
Hugo Esteban Rodríguez is a Mexican-American educator, writer and poet hailing from Mexico and the Rio Grande Valley. He is the author of "...And Other Stories" (2018, La Casita Grande Editores) as well as numerous other short stories, poems, and essays that have appeared in places like The Airgonaut, The Acentos Review, Picaroon Poetry, and the Texas Poetry Calendar. His story "The Ritual" was longlisted for Wigleaf's Top 50. He holds degrees from UTRGV and UTEP. He lives in northwest Houston with his wife and their three furchildren. He can be found on Twitter @HugoEstebanRC and on Instagram @nopalysabal.