Ian Hartley- Three Poems

Ian Hartley is a current resident of Saint Augustine Florida. He currently attends Flagler College where he is studying for his B.A. in Liberal Arts. He is also a writer for the Flagler College Gargoyle.


 
BOYHOOD

Would my father love me if I wore
a dress? Would he also understand
that not all boys want to be men?
Not everyone wants to be cowboys?

Drinking a beer. Smoking cigarettes.

If I’m different would he love me?
Would he know not to call me queer?
I don’t need to be a man.

Drunk slurs. Cigarette burns.
Makeup for the scars.

Little boy now a man.



OLIVER’S FEAST

I weep for the bitterness of my
own life, and smile for one more
day alive rather than an hour of hurt.
Remember a smile. A girl in love. Another
man likes the sound of wedding bells.

After this day I die, but define and
defy another lifetime of feeling like a
fool. No wedding bands or bells.

Just a bowl of hot soup with crackers.



BROKEN

Cigarettes. Cool Mint.
Beer. Cold and sweet.

The smiles seen from
Everyone.

A woman with one
Leg. A man who
Can’t see in his
Left eye.

Barkeep. Irish mob.
Self-employed.

There is also the
Girl who has a
Pretty face. Broken
Nose. Abusive Love.