Winter Solstice 2023
In Memory of Mike James
on this shortest day of the year
my grief is long
just four days since you transitioned
from this world to realm of sweet angels
& revered poets passed
now more than ever
i picture you as marlena in pink
no longer needing to maintain
the burly john wayne façade
to appease employer & bigots alike
you were my brother-sister-confidante
you’d say there’s your TMI for the day
i’d insist there’s no such thing
& treasure your confidence
it was a privilege being your ally
a pleasure your chosen family
there’s a seat for you now at the table
of your cherished ghosts—
marlene dietrich
robert lowell
james dickey
ezra pound
hemingway
warhol
haring
rocky
brando
& wayne
as great as they were
your legacy is secure
most magnificent
is the hopeful certainty you’re with
your dearest grandmother again—
first ally
first cheerleader
first force for good
the first to really see you for you
About the Author: Leslie M. Rupracht has poems in Asheville Poetry Review, As It Ought To Be Magazine, Aeolian Harp, Chiron Review, K’in, The Ekphrastic Review, Gargoyle, Anti-Heroin Chic, Kakalak, a chapbook, Splintered Memories (Main Street Rag), and elsewhere. She completed her first full-length poetry manuscript in 2023 and hopes to find it a good home. An editor, poet, writer, visual artist, and rescued pit bull mama, Leslie is co-founder and host of the monthly reading series, Waterbean Poetry Night at the Mic, in Huntersville, North Carolina.
Image Credit: Chase Dimock “Solstice Rose” (2024)
As It Ought To Be 