The Central Authority Spoke

by Ryan Quinn Flanagan / January 21st, 2018

and it sounded like many voices
at once
a septic symphony of harmonious
brutality
and the children looked to the adults
who looked to each other
everyone looking
like a sightseeing tour with
its eyes closed

and later at dinner
came that waiting for the knock
on the door

no one overly boisterous
as though laughter were a living
breathing thing
that could betray you

to save
itself.

Ryan Quinn Flanagan is a Canadian-born author residing in Elliot Lake, Ontario, Canada. His work can be found both in print and online in such places as: Evergreen Review, The New York Quarterly, Setu, In Between Hangovers, Red Fez, and The Oklahoma Review. Read other articles by Ryan.

This article was posted on Sunday, January 21st, 2018 at 8:02am and is filed under Poetry.