Rubber toy, kewpie doll-like, unearthed near the house while planting bulbs, head bulbous itself, mistaken at first for a rubber ball, but then,
scraping at dirt and roots and tugging, it came out, earth-stained, rubber lined and grainy like an old, old person’s face.
A toy lost years ago by a child playing, maybe a mock burial, maybe just left and covered over with leaves that turned to earth,
maybe discarded, maybe missed or not, its dirt-caked expression not letting on, held for decades, stiff little arms by its sides,
not so squeezable any longer lest it crack and split, colors faded beneath the stain, something maybe a child could love, or one much older forget.
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Read more of Matthew J. Spireng's poems and reviews in Lightwood. Go to our Search Button and enter his name.
Matthew J. Spireng’s 2019 Sinclair Poetry Prize-winning book Good Work was published in 2020 by Evening Street Press. A 12-time Pushcart Prize nominee, he is the author of two other full-length poetry books, What Focus Is and Out of Body, winner of the 2004 Bluestem Poetry Award, and five chapbooks. Website: matthewjspireng.com.
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