Fred Aiken Writing

Category: Poetry

April 6, 2024

work email at the end of the day on the last day of work//forever

i got a work email a few months ago,
but i never opened it,
not because i think it carried bad news,
it’s just, i didn’t want to deal with work at that time
because it was a friday, end of day,
and i thought i set up a reminder to check it the following monday,
but here it is, 3 months past,
and the invoice has come up overdue

April 5, 2024

under the skin

tattoo mold growing just under the skin,
flesh-eating, discolored, growing into the bones,
the surface simmers with a dying breath
escaping through lungs that can’t forget

April 4, 2024

pretending to have a routine

i woke up late
and i feel rushed,
but not in a real way, not like i need
to hurry through my routine,
though i guess one could say,
it might be helpful to have a routine
to begin with, but sometimes i like to pretend i do