Again and again he
compares the Earth to everything
within reach
it is smaller than a quarter now!
Well, if he holds it so,
about a foot and a half from his face
smaller than a ration pack
bigger than his penis flaccid
but not so erect and
take that Earth!
Though you don’t want to know
how long it took to line that up
weightless
and it’s small enough that
he can wrap his hand around it
magician’s sleight of hand
and pull it from behind your ear.
Small enough that he can tuck it
into his back pocket and
never look back
can bring it with him wherever he goes
and always it’s there
and he’ll know
no matter how far he travels
the Earth is smaller than
 |
Charles Payseur is an avid reader, writer, and reviewer of speculative fiction. His works have appeared in The Best American Science Fiction and Fantasy, Lightspeed Magazine, and Beneath Ceaseless Skies, among others, and many are included in his debut collection, The Burning Day and Other Strange Stories (Lethe Press 2021). He is the series editor of the Locus and Ignyte Award-winning We’re Here: The Best Queer Speculative Fiction (Neon Hemlock Press) and a multiple-time Hugo and Ignyte Award finalist for his work at Quick Sip Reviews. When not drunkenly discussing Goosebumps, X-Men comic books, and his cats on his Patreon (/quicksipreviews) and Twitter (@ClowderofTwo), he can probably found raising a beer with his husband, Matt, in their home in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. |