Poetry By Laura Stamps

       Peter Organisciak CC



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Red Wagon 
 
In the mailbox today. Another postcard. Oh, this is fun! Writing postcards to herself. Mailing them. Receiving one or two every week. These postcards she writes to herself. And the messages they contain. Her dreams. Ideas. Observations. What she wants. What she’s thinking about. What she wants to remember. Anything. Everything. Yes. This mail. These postcards. They make her smile. Just seeing one. Yes. They do that for her. And it doesn’t matter. That she’s the sender. That she’s the receiver. Doesn’t matter. None of it. None. She reaches into a decorative box on her desk. Selects a blank postcard. “Dear Elaine,” she writes to herself. “Don’t forget this. Don’t. This image. I want to remember this. What I saw today. A chilly morning. Driving to work. And there. A young man. Maybe sixteen or so. On the sidewalk. Pulling a red wagon. Like a child’s wagon. His cargo? Three tiny Chihuahuas. Bundled in warm sweaters. Sitting quietly. Serenely. In their red wagon. Enjoying the ride. The bright sunshine. The blue sky. The chilly air. And this young man. Out for a morning walk with his dogs. This image. It makes me smile. Just thinking about it. The four of them. Yes. There is still joy. Here. To be found. In this world. Plenty. Don’t forget this. Don’t. This image. There is joy.”   ​


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Laura Stamps loves to play with words and create experimental forms for her fiction and prose poetry. Author of 48 novels, novellas, short story collections, and poetry books. Most recently: CAT MANIA (Alien Buddha Press 2021), DOG DAZED (Kittyfeather Press 2022), and THE GOOD DOG (Prolific Pulse Press 2023). Winner of the Muses Prize. Recipient of a Pulitzer Prize nomination and 7 Pushcart Prize nominations.