The Gorko Gazette

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6.20.2025 7:00 AM

3 poems by Michael Igoe

Fragment

It isn’t from fear of an incident;
that there’s no real consolation.
Creating scenes with strangers
involves facing consequences.

I find it hard to understand why
palms sweat if you’re nervous.
In the case of our extended hotel stay
the staff confined us to separate beds
and forced us to sit in the hotel foyer.
Where handfuls of painted women
palmed off canceled lottery tickets.
They were surprised that we were well aware
and they couldn’t pull the wool over our eyes.
Held to a sense of compliance,
it seemed like it didn’t matter.

Catastrophe

To stay in the midst,
of every catastrophe.
Feeding clipped water
with only few fingers.
You have the results,
breakouts in dreams
in the way of Ouija.
These are forests
within other lives.
Where lilting voices
turn to roaring ones.
You did not hear them
but you became older.
Sense of apprehension
by sizing up every day.
Only permitted
to use them up
before sunrise.

Parched in the Hills

As far as any decision goes
needs are easily abandoned.
Seething is hard work,
and lack of pretense
brings no satisfaction.
Beauties of this valley
are capped by a dome.
They cry out for severance
from the cold hills of Adam.
Thus to a bitter end
no more showboats
carrying rank wines.
It’s somebody else
to cause animation
make lives appear,
they will be NOW.
Emerging on all fronts,
a lonely time searching.
Deep in the rushes
sitting on oilcloths
engaged in cardplay.
And take long draughts
from the rusty scuppers.

ABOUT THE ARTIST

Michael Igoe, city boy. neurodiverse, Chicago, now Boston. Numerous works appear in journals and anthologies (available at amazon.com, lulu.com, barnesandnoble.com). National Library of Poetry Editor’s Choice 1997. Best of the Net nomination 2023. poetry-in-motion.org

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