The other day
I found myself
Captivated by
An old photograph
Underneath my bed.
It showed a boy
In a green shirt
Arms crossed
Eyebrows knit
In an inexplicable scowl.
I recognized
That puckered face
And furrowed brow
I’d seen it once or twice before
In the mirror.
I wonder what
That boy was thinking
As he sat by himself
With his green shirt
And foggy glasses.
He wanted to be older
Bigger, stronger, wiser
To be 16 or 17
To gain the respect
That age gives you.
And now, standing bigger, stronger, wiser
I feel a nebulous desire
That I dreamt up
As I stared at the old photograph
Of the boy with the green shirt.
I wish to be anywhere
Anywhere else
To float in the river Lethe
And wake up
In a green shirt
Arms crossed
Eyebrows knit
In an inexplicable scowl.