Immigration Interview with Jay Leno
by Marcelo Hernandez Castillo
What is your objective?
To return all the children
hidden behind the street lamps.
How long do you plan on staying here?
I don’t understand
the question.
I said how long do you plan on staying here?
We would have drowned
even without our laughter.
Is that really your name?
Yes, the clothes on the floor
blossomed like the orchards in spring.
Have you been here before?
There was a man who knew the way.
I put his fingers in my mouth
when he pointed in the direction of the sun.
Who are you wearing?
The woman gave birth in the dark.
I thought I felt hands where there were none.
Everyone dug a useless hole.
Are you alone?
North was whichever way
the mannequins were pointing.
The softest bone was the one
that burned the longest.
Do you cry at night?
Are you alone right now?
from Cenzontle, BOA Editions, ©2018
Most Poetry will post a poem by a LGBTQ+ poet, selected by our members, each day through the month of August.