In Such a Place as This, by Jessica Lafortune

even in this	godforsaken place
there is stirring evidence	of life, like
the frog who came	just after the rain
and remains still	clinging to the glass
the lizards	beating a path to safety
rustling in the grass	outside my door
the squirrels	giving chase
playing tag	recklessly
in the street	irrespective of cars
and then there is me	alive, barely
running in place	depending on the day

Lunatic by Jessica Lafortune

driving	on empty
aimlessly	restless
crazy	as the full moon
shadowing	reflecting
all that	I pass
is	meaningless
temporal	vanity
like	a lunatic in the land of
midnight	sun
I am	alone
vanishing	in depravity

Floating Hope by Jessica Lafortune

between	living for them and
carving out a niche of	my own
lies	elusive balance
between	birth and death
past and future	lies
living	in the present now
I struggle	to find joy
in the mundane	tame the angst within
running around	the paddle wheel
maintaining	serene, clean
days decaying	hours trapped
like a fish	behind glass
a dead man	floating hope
martyred	for the pleasure of others

Jessica Lafortune lives in Florida, loved by humans and canines who (barely) tolerate her obsessive reading and writing habits. Her current fantasy involves living on an island in the Pacific Northwest, reading and writing to her heart’s content, supported by lottery winnings. Until then, she can be found substitute teaching, writing poetry, playing blackjack, and loving well those who know her best and keep coming back for more. Her poems can be found in Amaze, Simply Haiku and Babel Fruit.