John Leonard
Homecoming
When you say look me over,
I don't know what costume you mean.
Are we somehow more alive now?
I mean, back alive? - like those Sunday
revivals, where our skin was barely showing.
Or like the corner bar, with our date night
faces glowing? Why have you returned
with so many favors to ask of me?
I'm sorting through all of my faces,
wondering which one should I wear for you?
Which one is best suited to look over
your multitudes and dreamscapes, to sort
through Hollywood warehouses filled with
mannequins, all in full feather and each
disguised as someone I love, someone
I will look over as they pick me clean.
Bio
John Leonard is an award-winning writer, educator, and poetry editor for Twyckenham Notes. He holds an M.A. in English from Indiana University. His previous works have appeared in Poetry Quarterly, december, Chiron Review, North Dakota Review, Roanoke Review, Punt Volat, The Windsor Review, Rappahannock Review, Jelly Bucket, Mud Season Review, The Blue Mountain Review, Genre: Urban Arts, Stonecoast Review, and Trailer Park Quarterly. He lives in Elkhart, Indiana with his wife, three cats, and two dogs. You can follow him on Twitter at @jotyleon and @TwyckenhamNotes.