MORNING SHOWER 

 

I have bent my hand 

into the shape of a

chewed orange slice, or 

a telephone cord curl,

just so that the droplets

of tap water draining

from the showerhead

roll down and appear 

to pool from the very

tips of my fingers. 

 

I am staring for 

too long, and soap 

has started to fall into

my eyes. I’m trying 

to catch the bits of

life we let slip 

through the cracks.

Like in the law quad, 

how symmetrical gothic 

arches are adorned by 

gargoyles

 

jutting their tongues

at each passerby.
Or the child today 

sitting in the greenery,

with her jam stained

hand stolen into one 

pocket of a yellow 

raincoat, the Morton

Salt kind, and making

the same gargoyle

 

face right back! And 

although she did not 

win that tongue-out 

staring contest, she 

gave the stone creatures 

a run for their stone

money. 

. 

This is a miracle.
No shooting stars 

or runaway eyelashes.
This is it! All

this living makes

me think of the 

time my lover and I

walked the banks

of Lake Michigan 

and paused to gaze

at the cold pools below. 

 

Oh, the warmth

as our stretched smiles

filled the air, cackling

at the sight of a lime

green electric scooter

hurled into the depths

below. You could just

make out the shape of

of its handlebars,

the rear wheel, and

we smushed our cheeks 

together like two

rotten apples, laughing 

at this work 

of a mad man, or 

an artist, or an architect 

of human nature. 

Phoebe Bridgers is one of my all time favorite artists. Though her music may be about a specific event or situation, the emotions she sings about are universal. I personally interpret Garden Song, the second track on her most recent album “Punisher”, as the changes in our lives and in ourselves as we grow up. Noticing how much I’ve grown up always comes as a shock to me. I was (and still am) nervous about becoming an adult and all the responsibilities that come with it. But when I take a second to acknowledge my growth, or see myself from an outside perspective, I have to admit I’m making progress. Though other people might not know about the fears you had getting here, recognizing that you’re growing well can put some of your anxiety at about the future at ease. Or at least, it does for me. Definitely listen to Bridgers’ “Punisher” if you haven’t before, it’s a work of art!

As a long time Batman fan, I was super excited when The Batman finally came out a few weeks ago. So for this week’s post, I wanted to combine one of my favorite Batman comics, The Long Halloween (1996), with the new Batman movie, drawing Robert Pattinson and Zoe Kravitz in place of the comic book versions. I hope you like this rendition, and if you have the time, check out the comic or the movie!

The Original Comic Strip