
Now I actually leave my room,
Every day, I hop on the black train,
No matter if it is sun or rain,
I lug my luggage and never complain
The whistle blows me out again,
I miss that train by a wick, making my stomach churn,
I sprint to run late, to make the money I urn,
Instead of sprinting to feel a righteous lung burn
I smother that youthful yearn, until it turns to smoke,
And we unravel like yarn when the fiery sun sinks,
As I catch my reflection in the dark window like some jinx;
She looks startled, like a firefly in a jar, no blinks
So, I have started to go out more,
I neglect my liver and deliver
A blurry perspective of mirrors and smoke,
One that would make me a bestseller, give me spoke,
If I could just sit down and write about the yoke
When I was young, they said I had a spark in my eye,
But now every time I try to write, it fizzles, I cry
So, I catch the train to take a sip of moonshine,
Because I hate the bitter taste of whine
I rumble back and forth on the tracks,
A cloud of smoke trailing like evidence of a crime,
I used to be on fire, with every rhyme
A steady burning flame, but now I go out all the time


Jessica Thebarge entered Carleton this past fall in English and Creative Writing, eager to soak up as much
knowledge as possible. She quickly found a sense of home on campus, especially when frolicking along the Canal path. Most of her poetry is written on public transport.

