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1st Place

Tom Erickson

I never see anyone I know anymore
at Summerfest, like the time I was pissing
in the trash can in a jammed men’s room
when the guy across from me looked up
and said, “Hey man, aren’t you my lawyer?”
Indeed, ‘twas Carlos, an inveterate burglar
client of mine.
Several months later, Carlos and I are sitting
safely in a dismal courtroom in a dismal
building called the Safety Building. He’s about
to get a couple of years in prison and we have
a few moments to relax before the judge takes
the bench. Carlos tells me it’s really not so bad
in there. “I don’t have to make any decisions
and I can just sit there and think.” “Yeah”,
I say, “that’s pretty cool, I think.”
It’s almost noon by the time court is finished.
I drive back to my office on a sunny day
in late October. My mental clock is racing:
court appearances, my children’s obligations,
deadlines for this and that…

Carlos already evaporating.

Judge’s Comments: This poem has all the right touches, including a casual yet confident voice, a strong opening that propels readers right into a scene, and deftly handled character development. I like how the poem takes a leap in time eight lines in, and how the tension of the grim reality of a prison sentence is countered by the banter of the speaker and his client, who almost—almost—in a few words indeed does make prison not seem “so bad.” This is a quietly funny poem that creates empathy for both the speaker and Carlos and leaves readers pondering their own lives, without using a tidy punchline or forced cleverness.