Derailed
His berations broke the night like train whistles,
arriving regularly as the sputter of the rusted-out Buick,
the slam of the door, her head clattering across the boards,
and the smash of a bottle;
but he’s quiet, now, lying beside her,
smoke from the barrel lifting lazily between them.
I had originally written this as a One-Line Poem for Chalkboard’s brilliant Prompt: SILENCE by Fierce Force 💃🏼, but I exceeded the 30 word limit of the form, so I decided to just let this caged bird free and try for another.
About the Author
Owen Banner spent his childhood baptized in the red dirt of Mandeville, Jamaica and his adolescence in the neon morass of Manila in the Philippines. He’s lived in or traveled to countries all over the planet, nourished by their people and cultures. These diverse voices plant the seeds of his stories, which twist genre and seek new perspectives. Discover more at owenbanner.com.
