The Revolver
We find it dark and glowing, hidden
among swollen mounds of pine needles
near a weedy bank lined with cattails
and the fallen branches of a blackgum.
Together, we stand in the smothering heat
as wind thrums through the reeds.
One of the boys strikes a match
against his belt buckle. The air hisses.
The other bends to the ground,
picks the revolver from the dead leaves.
He presses it against the sky.
It flickers in the sun.
My brother’s hands cup my ears
as sunlight ricochets through the trees.
CHRIS TUSA was born and raised in New Orleans. He holds a B.A. in English, an M.A in English, and an M.F.A. in Creative Writing from the University of Florida. He teaches in the English Department at LSU and acts as Managing Editor for Poetry Southeast. With the help of a grant from the Louisiana Division of the Arts, he was able to complete his first chapbook of poetry, Inventing an End. His debut novel, Dirty Little Angels, was published by The University of West Alabama in March of 2009. His debut collection of poems, Haunted Bones, was published by Louisiana Literature Press in 2006. His work has appeared in Connecticut Review, Texas Review, Prairie Schooner, and others.
