Caroline

for a while 

every poem i wrote

was my way of imagining

that we were making love

in the grass 

or the alley 

by the candy store

or just about anywhere

i could remember 

ever holding your hand

i imagined the summer breeze

& an armful 

of red haired babies screaming

until we took turns 

rocking them to sleep

& you gently 

placed flowers

in their hair.

The Marrow of Blueberries

i dream you 

are the marrow

of blueberries

& the roman spike 

of aging rose bushes

& you say

i am living proof

that the sun

will make 

you bleed.

Poem for Katie Teagarden

all through high school

i don’t believe 

we ever exchanged 

more than a few words

you always looked nervous

standing by the swimming pool

waiting for the whistle

the sun always brought 

your freckles out

while the quiet 

kept you pure

on your the final morning

i think it rained.

John Dorsey is the former Poet Laureate of Belle, MO. He is the author of several collections of poetry, including Which Way to the River: Selected Poems: 2016-2020 (OAC Books, 2020), Pocatello Wildflower, (Crisis Chronicles Press, 2023), 100 Mornings, (Sacred Parasite, 2025), and Trump Stamp, (Crisis Chronicles Press, 2026).