Robert Okaji

While Drowning I Gaze at the Moon

This full moon confirms my cancer, the season's
spite. I would be a happy drunk, if given
opportunity. I'd spout poetry, sing
at the top of my lungs (some irony here),
interpret reflections from a bobbing boat.
Instead, I email a friend, ask if his moon
agrees with mine. It's 2 a.m., and I don't
want to be awake, blowing my cool over
inflation, health insurance and the market's
inconsistencies. I'd rather sip cava,
read Li Bai, munch on fig cookies. Dying sucks!

Robert Okaji holds a BA in history, and was recently diagnosed with stage four metastatic lung cancer. He lives, for the time being, in Indianapolis, and his work has recently appeared in Southern Humanities Review, Shō Poetry Journal, Stone Circle Review, Only Poems and elsewhere.