"Have Mercy" by Gabriel Hart

We prefer to receive

when we only encounter

a pair of wide eyes

an invitation on fire

to smother

a Gate beckoning

with a glare off the Pearly

only so gaping

after receiving so many

to make room

for another

presumptive

surprise

a marquee, now rheumy

advertising

every private thing

you’re hiding

where the only way to scream

is through your eyes

Gabriel Hart lives in California's high desert. He's the author of neo-pulp collection Fallout From Out Asphalt Hell and his new poetry volume Hymns From the Whipping Post, both from Close to the Bone. He's a regular contributor to Lit Reactor, L.A. Review of Books, and the Last Estate.