2 March 2002 | Vol. 2, No. 1
from A Silent Response
The karaoke bar was surreal. After the little punk kid sang
Michael Jackson's 'Beat It,' some fat guy with a beard
rallied the drunken troops for a version of 'God
Bless America' or something like that. A country
song I had never heard (it was only later
that I found out
about the song being
written years ago before
we really killed the Iraqis)
A woman in tight jeans, acid-
washed no less, asked for my lighter. Strange men placed their arms
around my shoulders as if we were war buddies or celebrating
the second coming. We swayed to an inebriated rhythm—
A cacophonous symphony of voices breaking and straining—
A chorus of holy fools, saints, heroes and whores. I mouthed
the words, fearing the mob of flannel shirts and baseball
caps would not understand the intention of my brown skin.
About the author:
Charles Valle was born in Manila, Philippines, raised in Southern California, and awakened in Portland, Oregon. He is currently enrolled in the MFA program at Notre Dame. He can be reached by email at the_outlier@hotmail.com, or online at thschrmngboy.diaryland.com.
For further reading:
See the complete list of work by Charles Valle at 42opus. Browse the contents of 42opus Vol. 2, No. 1, where "from A Silent Response" ran on March 2, 2002. List other work with these same labels: poetry.
