litmus test
Would you buy flowers
for yourself? Can you
tell me all the people who would?
The people who have?
Are you looking forward to what comes next?
Can you visualize
yourself there? Where are you
standing? How
are your knees? How does it feel to dial
your memorized numbers?
What do you say
when they pick up?
Do you trust your luck? If I tell you
luck was never a part of it,
what then? Are you
translating people’s faces with kindness?
How afraid are you of their teeth?
How afraid are you of yours?
Noreen Ocampo (she/her) is a Filipina American writer and poet based in metro-Atlanta. She studies English, film, and media at Emory University and currently writes for COUNTERCLOCK and {m}aganda magazine. She is also a regular contributor for Marías at Sampaguitas. Say hi on Twitter @maybenoreen!