His medication ran out so
he may be slightly off today,
says Jake’s mother.
I whisper these words to my colleague, Elaine;
I know she won’t forget to tell his teacher.
Riccardo throws punches at
the air when his mom tells him no,
he may not take his iPad out of the car.
He kicks the front seat before he exits the vehicle.
Rylee has something important to tell me,
she says as she slides out the car.
I’ve never seen snow, she reports.
I am from Guam. Can we smell the snow?
I find a glove in the crosswalk,
slide it over the gate post to draw attention.
A first grader reaches for ice crystals
on her dad’s car. Brings them to her lips.
Linda Lamenza is a poet and literacy specialist in Massachusetts. Her work has appeared in Lily Poetry Review, San Pedro River Review, Nixes Mate Review, Ovunque Siamo and elsewhere. Left-Handed Poetry (Finishing Line Press, 2024) is her first chapbook and was a finalist for the Hunger Mountain Mayday Chapbook series. Linda’s first full-length book, Feast of the Seven Fishes, is forthcoming from Nixes Mate this Fall.