Swagger
It's the equestrian fit of your slacks
I'm thinking about as I walk the dog,
A fresh snow covering the trash
And broken glass on the bank of the Mystic,
Two Canadian geese in a spat
Flapping their wings wildly
The flock circling like a schoolyard
Chanting, "Fight, fight, fight!"—
And the clap of those black boots
As you strolled out,
High-heeled and polished.
JASON TANDON is the author of two chapbooks, Flight (Finishing Line Press, forthcoming 2007) and Rumble Strip (Sunnyoutside Press). His first full-length collection, Give over the Heckler, was a finalist for the 2006 Kinereth Gensler Award from Alice James Books. His poems have appeared in Columbia Poetry Review, Red Cedar Review, Euphony, Poet Lore, and elsewhere. He teaches at the University of New Hampshire and is an intern poetry editor at the Paris Review.