Attenuated dreams

expect surprises
expect water mains to bust, electrical wires to sag
expect what goes unquestioned
expect prices to rise
expect rape
expect disgust and dismay, schlock and awe
expect every sexual position
expect flat surfaces to bend
expect rocks to roll and rolls to mold
expect blood with birth, dirt with death
expect suspicion in whispers and formal reports
expect closed doors and widening avenues
expect deforestation and molestation
expect naked mole rats and hairy behemoths
expect mistakes will be made and mistakes unmade
           like your bed
like your questions
like microbes
like cement mixers
like undressing
like redressing
like hunts for unknown
           mistakes mistakenly expected  

Cheryl Pallant is the author of several poetry books, three chapbooks and a nonfiction book on dance. Her latest book is Morphs (Cracked Slab Books, 2009). Poetry, fiction, and nonfiction have been published in numerous anthologies as well as in online and print journals in the United States and abroad. She teaches writing and dance, most recently at University of Tulsa, Oklahoma. Her home is in Richmond, Virginia, where she is writing a memoir about living in South Korea.