I understood the word
< wanton >
to mean a deep and desperate want—
to be waifish and lacking
Instead it means
malicious
or a
promiscuous woman
Why are there so many English words for a wayward female
On I-94 at 80 mph in the left lane
behind a cagey fishtail of trailer with open sides
loaded with demo debris and hauled by a late 90’s Dodge pickup
riding low with loose scrap
More than ever
semis dominate this route—
we all just need
to get there
Spray of something off the back
hits windshield—was that glass
that chorus of tinkly plinks on impact—
inertia bewitching the delicate
signal right: get over
only to follow rogue trailer again minutes later
for another round of broken window—
shard shower on pavement between us
signal right again:
pass with purpose
and a hard left stare—
Who are these people
We should have taken a picture of the license plate he says
Hungry hollow gaze
safety is expensive
< wanton >
The disparity is inconvenient
Corporate-bonus-funded Subaru—
hood paint chipped down to the chrome
in X-ACTO®-ed triangles
nick of windshield to match
We get home
to survey the
surprisingly
minimal damage
It’s just a car he says
And so it is
Photo by dhruvik ramani on Unsplash
