Dear Straight Boy

you must be
counting the days
till your wedding.
bet you’re picking
the perfect song.
bet your sister
will sing it.
bet Good Ole Boys
will bless it.
bet your girl will wear
her mother’s dress.
bet bakers won’t
debate your cake.
bet you can marry
in your Baptist church.
bet they never
told you about brimstone.
bet their band sounds like Bethel.
bet you raise your hands.
bet you’ve never heard
of conversion therapy.
bet mom never bought you
that for Christmas.
bet she’ll bounce your kids
on her knees.
bet your wife wants seven kids.
bet you pursued her hard.
bet you won’t touch her till the wedding.
bet she never prayed to want to touch you.
bet you’ll build your picket fence.
bet you’ll cut your grass.
bet you’ll wear boxers
around the house.
bet you’ll never worry if the neighbors
will throw stones at your house.
bet police will protect your house.
bet your house has five bedrooms.
bet you get a big one in heaven.

By Amy Lauren Jones

Biography:

Amy Lauren Jones is a graduate organ major at Mississippi College, where she received her B.M. with a minor in English in 2015. Among other publications, her poetry appears in Wherewithal, Vagabond City, and GERM Magazine.”