August 13th by Leah Mueller

On the morning of your
51st birthday, I dreamt
someone had planted
numerous piles of
cat shit around the floor
of your apartment.

They placed the shit
on mounds of sand, perched
on raised cement coasters
to create the effect of a

minefield of feces. I laughed:
thought it a clever trick,
and fitting. You materialized
out of nowhere, and
apologized for being away.

I thought you’d been avoiding me.
Relieved because you weren’t,
I forgave you for everything.
The cat shit disappeared.

A few hours later, I sent you
a happy birthday text.

Headed to the corner bar
after a month of sobriety,
you seemed anxious
for our conversation to end.

I suspect you’re getting
too old for this shit,
but since I’m 2000 miles away,

all I can do is hope you
don’t step in the middle of it.
On the other hand,
I kind of hope you do.

Leah Mueller is an indie writer and spoken word performer from Tacoma, Washington. She has published books with numerous small presses. Her most recent volumes, "Misguided Behavior, Tales of Poor Life Choices" (Czykmate Press) and "Death and Heartbreak" (Weasel Press) were released in October, 2019. Leah’s work also appears in Blunderbuss, The Spectacle, Outlook Springs, Atticus Review, Your Impossible Voice, and other publications. She won honorable mention in the 2012 Wergle Flomp Humor Poetry contest. Her new chapbook, "Cocktails at Denny's" is looking for a home.