When I told Coach Long I was quitting
Cross Country, he understood, it was cool,
though he said he’d just figured out
what my name would be. He named us all.
Caveman. Scooter. Breeze.
He had to watch us first and see.
I’ve been wondering again
what my name would have been.
I’ve been praying,
and in the early morning darkness
a light from my neighbor’s house
has made a pattern on the wall
above the couch, like leaves.