Red River Writes

Uriah J. Oxford
Pastor-teacher
thechristfellowship.com
myspace.com/christfellowship
thechristfellowship.com

Bio: Uriah, is Pastor-teacher of Christ Fellowship, a community of artists and writers. Uriah has been writing poetry since he was in middle school. He writes for the page and the stage. He has performed at venues in Shreveport doing inspirational spoken word poetry. Currently, Uriah is concentrating mainly on writing for publication. His work will be in the Fall/Winter Issue of Iodine Poetry Journal. He has also had poems selected for other small journals. Recently he has started his own online poetry journal; twodaystay poetry journal. Some of his work is available on the page uriahoxfordpoetry.wetpaint.com. This year he published an anthology from writers of Christ Fellowship (myspace.com/christfellowship), entitled "twodaystay".

Smiling for the Blades

Look away I'm smiling and you can't see me like this.
Turn away I'm happy and you shouldn't have to witness this.
Walk away I'm whole again and you wouldn't want to suffer to know what I've become.
Stop writing, stop writing on yourself with those blades.
The feel of metal on my skin makes me big.
Big little kid stomping in a bathroom prison;

Knock knock?
Who's there? said the lover of no good to me.
It's just me, the one who runs.
It's just me the one who runs who?

The running pain drips into the faucet of a vanity.

Drinking with Hot Spiders

She found him in the 110 degree shed
Drinking a 90 degree beer.
The beer sat there for as long as he would allow it.
Spider friends sipping and almost drowning, climbing
out drunk not to be caught.
His eyes caught hers through a dust covered window;
Dammit, he turns the hot stale back. It goes down to that place
where it has to do what it has to do.

The cockaroach waves his legs in a supine position.

Conversation at a Chain Coffee Shop

While sweeping around his feet I disturbed him from reading
His Shreveport Times.
I can move if it will help.
No you're fine. I reply close to the end of my shift.
So what?s happening in the news.
(Pause) Aw, same ole, same ole---just war stuff.
----Well, Ok, how's your triple venti toffee nut latte, this afternoon?

It's perfect.

So there we were, two perfectly disconnected men drinking bad coffee

While a nation is a going through just war stuff.
So how'd your son die maam, aw same ole, same ole, war stuff.

I see.

Will you kill me please?

Yes. Let me finish this last sip.