Be Honest Though, Am I Annoying?

We walk along a dirt path

you’re quiet, I fill the void

I tell you about all the things in the news

that annoyed me this morning

and the pets I had growing up

and the dream I had last night

and the plot of a book I’m not writing

you’re quiet, I fill the void

I complain about my feet

and stop to take photos of flowers

I tell you what they are

(you already know)

I think about lunch

and run out of things to say

I’m quiet, you fill the void

you point up at a tree and say

look at those birds, aren’t they nice?

this type of bird, they mate for life

and I believe you because you know things

like which birds are monogamous

so we stop and watch awhile

in comfortable silence

until I tell you about that time

my cat brought in a pigeon (deceased)

and the pigeon’s mate waited

in the garden for weeks

wondering where its partner went

I say it like it’s a joke

and you tell me it’s sad

we walk on

you’re quiet, I fill the void

All rights. Rowan Smith.

Rowan Smith (he/they) is a trans, queer writer and artist from North East England. He enjoys writing strange, spooky poems and short stories, and is currently studying to become a librarian.