Wendy Lloyd - Under My Bed

crushed-cornered shoe box
contained in its better days
bubblegum-colored ballet flats
size seven, wide width
to be worn with my denim skirt
and hibiscus-patterned camisole

physics binder from junior year
54/60 on the exam for chapter seven
incorrect formula used on number ten,
a problem asking the kinetic energy
of an airborne pole vaulter,
which I’ll never again need to know

grease-speckled paper plate
left there from two Mondays ago
when I ate a helping of cheese fries
during a marathon study session:
75 pages of Tess of the D’Urbervilles,
a French composition about holidays

broken portable CD player
detached cover, cracked display
hours of entertainment on a stale bus
during some forgotten school field trip
when the driver lost his way
and we arrived home hours overdue

letters written by my older cousin –
from her summers spent away at camp –
destined to dropp out of community college
after her first semester (1.50 GPA)
and get pregnant within a few months
to a boy her parents had never met

overstretched swim cap, off-white
my school’s name in maroon lettering
mom forced me to join the swim team
as a freshman, hoping I would make friends
except I have asthma and don’t float in water
in the whole season, I only swam in one relay

Wendy Lloyd

http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/under-my-bed/