The Great Thing About Driving With a Crack in Your Windshield
Definitely not the beating your wallet will take later,
nooooo
But a year of cracked-windshield driving—
a big ol’ crack straight through the center
Separating North and South Windshield—
let me tell ya,
After 12 months of 8-to-5 beatings,
boss naggings and fickle office alliances,
That crack remains strong and growing,
centimeter by centimeter, like a small child
Some days when you gaze at it
you can’t help but smile
Like the scar on your forearm,
that crack is your crack and your crack alone—
Your slash of stubbornness
in a world spun by fat hamsters
When you drive
most days you don’t even notice it
You forget it’s there,
that beautiful crack,
Glistening like a brilliant diamond
when the sun hits it juuuuust right
About the Author: Alex Z. Salinas lives in San Antonio, Texas. He holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from St. Mary’s University. His poetry has appeared in the San Antonio Express-News, Shot Glass Journal, The Rye Whiskey Review, Duane’s PoeTree, The Dope Fiend Daily, and in the San Antonio Review, where he serves as poetry editor. His short fiction has appeared in publications such as Every Day Fiction, Mystery Tribune, Red Fez, Nanoism, escarp, 101 Words, and 365tomorrows.
Photo Credit: “Truck Windshield with Hail Damage in OK” from the FEMA Photo Library
As It Ought To Be 
