a quick search, a type and tap
or a phone-sought friend, at longest last

will tell you,
plainly
to elevate an injured limb
few fists above a resting heart

to drain away the fluid
from accumulation
and communicate
with wounded temple
on hollowed hill
of freshly-puffed pillows

you were running from a train
to a train, wrapping up its bon voyage
in dawdling little increments
amongst the rainy island

but you tumbled
and felt the shock
of being limbed-in
all right-angled world,
alright ye angled world

elevate all the same
on softened stuff
at night a drowsy head

and let the day drain from it
and heal like an ankle
the brain from worser wounds

July 30, 2024

About the writer

Matt Gulley is a poet, playwright and fiction writer. He attended Wayne State University in Detroit and currently resides in Brooklyn with his partner Jenna. His work has appeared or is forthcoming in Moon City Review, The Madrigal, The Minnesota Review and Consequence Forum. Find him @selfawareroomba on Twitter or @mattgulley.bsky.social on Bluesky.