Desert Rose by Douglas Richardson

She removes the left shoe

the hospital wristband

the right shoe with the shoestrings frayed

then she wanders after dark

still looking for the shade

Douglas Richardson is a poet and novelist who lives in Santa Ana, California, with his wife, Jen, and cat, Wes. He has been published in a few literary journals over the years, including Hobo Camp Review, Misfits’ Miscellany, Straight Forward Poetry, The Nervous Breakdown, and Poetry Super Highway. In 2013, he won the Poetry Super Highway contest with his entry, “Notes from the Graveyard Shift.”