—Dean Young, “How to Be a Surrealist”

I have walked with them in their cellblocks,
worn their lavish uniforms, been one of them,
among them, stood in line in the chow hall
for a tray so gourmet we identify it as caviar.
Why did the champagne smell like watermelon?
Why did our squared-off limos
have wire mesh across the windows?
We were the elite, living off pomp,
our pillows the softest kind of hard.
How could that be punishment?
Our fortunes grew by sixty cents an hour
as if we were pilfering, picking pockets,
waving knives & broken bottles.
Yes, Sir, we were glorious,
at the height of fashion in ill-fitting khakis.
Don’t you ever worry about us.

Ace Boggess is author of six books of poetry, most recently Escape Envy. His writing has appeared in Indiana Review, Michigan Quarterly Review, Hanging Loose, and other journals. An ex-con, he lives in Charleston, West Virginia, where he writes, watches Criterion films, and tries to stay out of trouble. His forthcoming books include poetry collections, My Pandemic / Gratitude List from Mōtus Audāx Press and Tell Us How to Live from Fernwood Press, and his first short-story collection, Always One Mistake, from Running Wild Press.