The Morning After the Worst News

by Juan Mobili

Grief does not tip-toe,

it’s loud enough to wrench you

from a forgiving dream,

it arrives as entitled

as a Roman general

or the good Samaritan

at the local coffee shop

inserting a plastic straw

in your throat,

to help you breathe again.

Juan Pablo Mobili was born in Buenos Aires, and adopted by New York. His poems appeared, among others, in The American Journal of Poetry, Hanging Loose Press, South Florida Poetry Journal, Louisville Review, The Paterson Literary Review as well as a number of publications in the UK, Germany, Turkey, Hong Kong, Argentina, and Australia. His work received multiple nominations for the Pushcart Prize and an Honorable Mention from the International Rights Human Arts Festival. His chapbook,  “Contraband,” was published in 2022, and, most recently, he was the Guest Editor of the Spring 2023 issue of the Banyan Review.