The First Day of Middle School by Devon Neal

He’s a silver dollar sea turtle

in my sand-sugared palm

with flippers the size of kidney beans

and ink-stained eyes

that have never seen stars.

At my feet, waves lap hungry

and the air is snowed

with burning salt. Nothing stops

for a handful of life

with a paper-thin shell. We stand

at the edge as it chews

with stone-ground molars

and a bellybutton moon

and I know I have to unbend

my pebble-kinked fingers

because the only thing between

the first day and second day

is the letting go.

Devon Neal (he/him) is a Kentucky-based poet whose work has appeared in many publications, including HAD, Stanchion, Stone Circle Review, Livina Press, and The Storms, and has been nominated for Best of the Net and the Pushcart Prize. He currently lives in Bardstown, KY with his wife and three children.