Day 1, Poet 1: Carol Guess

​
​Early Floral

Easy to warn the girl in the slasher pic with a hiss and a shudder. Easy to sentence her to death, dismemberment at Bible camp, where you go to ride bareback and braid doormats from bread bags. Your counselor is tall, blonde Sally, and tan. Later, at dance camp, you flail on your toes. At cheerleading camp, you wear a short skirt that sways when you walk, as if someone’s watching. Someone is always watching a girl. Listen carefully to the voice in the movie. The girl in the movie made unfortunate choices, which you never do. She’s nothing like you. And now she’s nothing, blank bed in your cabin, where you rest after Crafts while you count down to Pool. She’s so gone it’s wholesome: purse on a hook, copper penny missing where good luck lurks.

​Previously Published in Gone Lawn 

Carol Guess is the author of numerous books of poetry and prose. A frequent collaborator, she teaches in the MFA program at Western Washington University.
 
www.carolguessbooks.com
www.carolguess.blogspot.com