On the theme of Envy
When John Enters a Room
there are mouths opening,
owning the air around them,
warming the oven lowered
by his mint julep saunter
brought on by too much strobe
lighting dance floors, too much
sequence, too much hips.
His glass is empty, and everyone
sees himself in it, splashing
feet at the edge of the rim.
Like backlit skinny dips,
no one wants to be the first
to remove the towel, but every
one wants to see what he’s got.
The room is hot, and all they do is
stare and swallow air like gin,
like skin, like water, like rum, like
Author Biography
A recent graduate of the Master of Book Publishing program at Portland State University, J. Adam Collins is currently compiling his first chapbook, while working as a book editor for Night Owls Press and a freelance book designer. His poetry has been featured in Pathos Literary Magazine, Cactus Heart Press Review, Red Ochre Press Review, Black&White Literary Magazine, and Floating Bridge Press Review #5. He is a regular performer at spoken word events, including the Portland Poetry Slam, Ink Noise Review, and the Stone Soup Reading Series.