Gatorland

By Jason Kerzinski

My mother questions my father in Central Florida
far away from home
my mother feeling emboldened at the entrance of Gatorland

as my father wonders why this question is being asked at this moment in time
under the Florida sun in the land of paradise

My mother casually asking my father why he no longer cares to touch her
a couple hurriedly moves past my mother convinced
they are the definition of marital bliss in the Gatorland parking lot

I begin to wonder
if I get married
will I eventually stand in the same spot in Central Florida
my son nearby as my wife blurts out for all the alligators to hear
as I try to rationalize an answer to my wife why
I have an inability to express love
like my stupid father

___

Jason Kerzinski is a poet, photographer and freelance labor journalist living in New Orleans.