The Day After Thanksgiving
Crack of dawn, we got here first.
Now my feet are tired and sore.
Boxes bulging, bundles burst,
Buckling under sales galore.
Wife’s done well and I’m half dead.
But I know it isn’t far.
I can almost taste my bed.
—Darling, where’d I park the car?
James B. Nicola, winner of three poetry awards and recipient of one Rhysling and two Pushcart nominations, has published over 400 poems in Atlanta Review, Tar River, Texas Review, and other journals. A Yale grad and stage director by profession, his book Playing the Audience won a Choice Award. His first full-length collection, Manhattan Plaza, is scheduled for 2014.