Allen Guy Wilcox’s new poem, “At the Dinner Table at Night,” is featured in his collection The Red Goose, which is now available from Doubly Mad. The poem paints a quiet domestic scene, describing a family’s evening routine and the gentle rhythms of home life.
Wilcox writes of stepping gingerly through the house, searching for quiet projects to leave for a partner, and of a girl improvising tomorrow’s necessities. He describes large glasses of water, a bowl of dressed cabbage, and the desire to keep the family hug unfeigned. The poem ends with a shared look up at the clear night from the driveway, holding hands or not, but together.