Zackary Jarrell

according to my grandmother

—for Patti

I am her son reincarnate; he grew
too big for his bike helmet and took
a ride. When he slid across
granite or ground and tasted blood
somewhere in his bones,

it was muggy out. It's cold
now and has been. At least there
are no ghosts; instead, there’s me.
And when I held her in the hospital 

that’s exactly what he would have
done. Between labored coughs, lacking
lungs and sterility 

we watched a husk decay to a soft burr
in a bed. He hemorrhaged
after his slide; she couldn’t 

say goodbye. I wish I were there
then, but I only live now
because he does not,

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Zackary Jarrell graduated from Salisbury University, majoring in Creative Writing, and is pursuing his Master's at Florida Atlantic University. He is the former Captain of the Salisbury University Ultimate Frisbee Club. He has poetry forthcoming in the Westchester Review and Oakland Arts Review. He was born in Christiana, Delaware, grew up in Elkton, Maryland and is an avid seasonal member of the Delaware Ultimate Community.