What I Know Now--By Gary Glauber--United States

What I Know Now

Respect to the first grade boys

who I led inauspiciously

with proud false knowledge

to an unknown upstairs lavatory.

The pink walls seemed a trap

which corroded my confidence;

the missing urinals heightened

the intensity of the moment.

It took every ounce I could muster

to hurry us along, sweating

the milliseconds of our visit,

hoping I’d never be found out.

Gary Glauber is a poet, fiction writer, teacher, and former music journalist.  His works have received multiple Pushcart Prize and Best of the Net nominations. He champions the underdog to the melodic rhythms of obscure power pop. His collection, Small Consolations (Aldrich Press) is available through Amazon, as is a chapbook, Memory Marries Desire (Finishing Line Press). His next collection, Worth the Candle, is forthcoming from Five Oaks Press.