heaven is an elementary school book fair
selling thin plastic bookmarks we all slip in pockets
inhaling the rubbery smell of erasers
heaven is an elementary school book fair
with a 20 dollar bill from my mom clutched in a sweaty palm
as i browse my options
heaven is an elementary school book fair
at a catholic school that used to be a residential school but i won’t learn that until
i’m long gone
heaven is an elementary school book fair
in which two copies of a book called Pride hide in a corner
not yet touched by students
heaven is an elementary school book fair
and in heaven, i hide the book called Pride between two others and
bring it up to the counter
and i hand it to the librarian with my 20 dollar bill, now damp with a slick sheen of my own fear, and she scans the books and adds up the price and passes me two dollars and forty cents and she looks me in the eyes and she knows and she can’t say anything but i know she sees me, only twelve, already afraid.
heaven is an elementary school book fair
and God is an old french librarian with wire-framed glasses and a harsh voice, and God
sees me as i am
Eileen Smith is an eighteen-year-old incoming McGill student from northern British Columbia. She thinks many things and occasionally tries to put them into words. When she's not writing, she can be found acting, reading, hanging out with her cat, and taking four-hour naps.
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