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In summer black boy burns. Say,
black boy takes shelter. Imagine
summer camp. Black boy afloat
in Lake Michigan. Black boy
piñata. Black boys dance. Death drop.
Black boy could be a first cousin once
removed. Black boy would be ten now.
Or twelve. Black boy looks
like a father he’s never seen. Black boy
is a grandma’s boy. He is amalgam.
Black boy is dragonfly: brilliant, iridescent,
conspicuous in flight. 24,000
ommatidia. Black boy is anther
and filament. Black boy is a tyger,
tyger. Adopted black boy is a steal.
$17k. Black boy is waiting. Is chicken
chest. Black boy is grandfather clock tall. Black
boy is never a clock tower. Black boy
is egret wings. Is flying. Is his father’s
arms. Black boy is lisp and puppy scented.
Black boy is whipping boy.
Black boy is billy goats gruff. Black boy’s first
home is ragdoll, is a closet corner,
is tender purple. Black boy is plum pit,
walnut hull. Black boy is curupira.
Black boy is a dark city, is an open
window, is a roving squad car, is crashing
glass and song. A single black boy is the
softest avocado in the market.
A black boy is confetti. See his locked
hair fairy. See his smile shatter light. See him
shake in his new bathroom. See him wash
his hands and brush his teeth.
See the little boy explode into laughter.
Cover Art by Stephanie Broussard