Ghazal of a Divorce
His shock collar on the dog’s sleek neck—tight is not the word—
no more bothering the neighbors. Polite is not the word.
She gardened , pretended not to think of the nice guy
at work, believed she had no choices—insight is not the word.
His world was a chessboard, black and white
then he married a poet, all areas gray: plight is not the word.
She didn’t mean for one kiss to become two.
That may be a lie. Ignite is the word.
His anger silent, like sandbags damming any floods—
no tears, no bruise—fight is not the word.
The rule is apologize as often as needed
but she couldn’t voice it. Contrite is not the word.
He will tell the children what she did, if he believes
it justice—spite is not the word.
It all comes down to poems: write
and she is damned—incite is not the word.
Lisa Charnock’s poetry has appeared or is forthcoming in The Southern Review, Third
Wednesday, The I-70 Review, The Hopkins Review, The Southern Poetry Review, Lily
Review, and Silk Road Review, among other journals. Lisa earned her MFA at the
Solstice Creative Writing Program. She taught a poetry workshop at the Salinas Valley
State Prison for over a decade, and now teaches a bi-monthly poetry workshop near her home in the San Juan Islands.
Grand Little Things 