Jorrell Watkins | Juke Joint

Hurricane Safety Drill

We were always watching

for a hurricane to stare

us down, horrified to look

Isabel, Maria, and Ivan

straight in the eye

for the sky to twin

with the blacktop our teacher

calling our names against

a dirge of raindrops

for our desks to be swept

by gusts of wind slinging

shards of hale and glass

through cracked windowpanes

for our teacher to shrink into

child, as horripilation swells

on Isabel, Maria and Ivan

with no relief in sight

for our heads to sink

into cavities of elbow and

knee our bodies wedged

teeth in the hallway

for the loose tooth rocking

in and out of his place, giving

the adults chase until thunder

dismisses his sudden recess

for the realization to float as

flood thrashed cars, that we

did not have an alarm nor sign

for wind, our ruin would come

if we stopped watching

A Drive through July Showers

Have you ever stopped at a light

and hoped it didn't turn green?

That your car would soak the velvet

luminescence and become the lover

that sponged passion from your touch.

Have you ever touched something

and felt it withdraw? Like a poorly

aligned steering wheel veering

far from the right—

Would you feel right if a Lexus

passes you in speed-up rage,

while you abide by cautious eyes

ensuring the safety of those around you?

Would you feel safe under scalding rain

that croons about a love to die for?

Might you think to twist the dial and

seek a beat that will soothe you.

Maybe you'll study windshield wipers

in idleness and stir about a sway

unlike splattered raindrops, smeared

lipstick stains into a hazy imprint—

it looks just like the rosy mist of

stoplight radiance striking vapor

risen from a running car's hood.

If this light turns green how would

you know when to stop moving on?

Jorrell Watkins (Brotha Jorrell) is an educator and artist from Richmond, VA. He earned his B.A from Hampshire College. From 2014-2017, he served as the Director of the nationally touring Hip-hop Theater play, Mixed Race Mixtape. He was a 2018 National Young Playwright in Residence at the Echo Theater Company. Currently, he is a MFA Poetry candidate at the University of Iowa, Writer's Workshop, where at the same university he is a Diversity Fellow with the Center for Disabilities and Development. Outside of writing he is a 1st degree black belt in Shotokan Karate and an intermediate beginner in salsa dancing. You can find him on Instagram and Twitter @brothajorrell.

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