Sudasi Clement
Half-Full
U.K. Appoints a Minister for Loneliness, NY Times
The Minister of Loneliness needs
an Infinite Rucksack to hold her tools.
Mixtapes, mirror, 3D printer. Puppy,
poultice, pomegranate seeds.
Hammer. Tongs. Hi, Hello,
I’m from the Ministry of Loneliness.
She practices her gentlest voice.
May I offer whiskey, a worry stone?
She was appointed with zero experience
and one qualification: boundless cheer.
Her first day is jam-packed. 9 house calls,
2 pubs, and a bathhouse. Driving home
in the dark she mistakes a trash bag
slumped on the curb for a man, head in hands,
and pulls over to check on him. No pulse.
She exhales and looks up at the half-moon,
absently wonders where the other half has gone.
Sudasi Clement is the former poetry editor of Santa Fe Literary Review (2006-2016). Her work has appeared or is forthcoming in Slipstream, Ligeia Magazine,Main Street Rag, pacificREVIEW, Loch Raven Review, Rat’s Ass Review, Ovunque Siamo, and Room Magazine, among others. She is the author of a chapbook, The Bones We Have in Common, published by Slipstream Press.