Without

My Mother says Adam never knew shame
until the sin. Says he was fat dumb and happy
lying naked in the garden,

never felt the itch from Eden’s sand on his bare ass
and to think about that when I’m primping Saturday night.

I never wore pleats until Charlene put me in them,
just work boots and high school mascot shorts,
shirtless whenever I had the chance.

I didn’t lift weights to tighten skin
around my stomach; I loved to sweat
and scream through the squat,
wrestle drunk and run block for Frankie.

Wore cologne for Charlene at her sister’s wedding,
a gift to save me from the smell of Adam
in the grass, fat dumb and happy.

3 Comments

  1. Rudy Thomas - February 24, 2015

    Good example of a confessional poem that works.

  2. Rose DiMatteo - April 27, 2015

    I just really loved reading this, Christopher. I mean, “wrestle drunk and run block for Frankie” is astonishing. And the rest is pretty astonishing, too.

  3. Christopher Grillo - February 6, 2016

    Thanks for the kind words guys! Always nice to hear!

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