I Took a Trip
And forgot to tell my neighbor Sal to water my garden. I was gone for two months.
When I returned, the jacarandas reached the clouds; the strawberries rolled like boulders; the poppies’ brilliance burned my retinas. The mint climbed the walls of my property and broke and spread and rushed and ran. I packed some supplies and jumped on my Harley and roared down its soft green carpet. I rode until my back hurt and my wrist was sore from gassing the throttle. I slept on its fragrant body, miles from my home.
After a brief rest, I got back on my motorcycle and rode hard all through the night, the single headlight beaming upon nothing but green.
Mathieu says, a baby grand piano (only for jazz) with the lid lifted, so the bass and treble strings can breathe.
In our dream band, on baby grand piano:
Mathieu Cailler is the author of six books. His short stories, poems, and essays have appeared in numerous national and international publications, including the Los Angeles Times, The Saturday Evening Post, and PANK. He is the recipient of a Shakespeare Award, a Short Story America Prize, and a New England Book Festival Award. Heaven and Other Zip Codes (Open Books, 2020), his debut novel and most recently published book, was named the winner of the 2021 Los Angeles Book Festival Prize. To learn more, please visit mathieucailler.com or find him on social media @writesfromla.
Ran Off With the Star Bassoon 