HE TRAINED THE ALTAR BOYS
My wife is scared to wake
me in the morning. Every night
for decades, I have had the same dream.
So afraid of sleep that I numbed
myself with whatever was around.
There is a man lying on top
of me always in the darkness,
never recognizable.
At times I am able to hide; so he
would find another boy in the gym.
In my solitary confessional, I write
to escape these memories.
Now an old man ― my foot is stuck
in a steel trap. I’m chewing it off
so it won’t destroy me.