The World According to Poetry #11
Desert Party
By Stephanie Wood Miller © 2019
High on the curves of Mulholland Drive
Flickering veins of lights
Radiate out
Stop abruptly at the ocean
That laps up against the arid coast
A false promise that doesn’t quench our thirst
Good wine, catered small portions
Pass among them
Beautiful, white teeth
Tennis bracelets, silky hair
Turnaround and development deals
And always jeans and tans
Hope and rejection
Fear and promise
And all the time begging you to
Like me
Use me
Want me
I won’t be real
Until my name rolls through the dark
Seen only by cast-off popcorn bags and empty soda cups