Did you get the message I painted on your garage door? Your lawn’s looking a bit long. We have robot vacuums now; where are the robot lawnmowers? Or did we acknowledge the risk of robotic blades on wheels? We go to the robot fields and pick a few of the ripest ones. We don’t bother to program them; we assume they know the drill. To this robot I say, “I’ll put a lawnmower in your hands.” And to the next: “You’ll get the hedge clippers.” “You can dig ditches.” “You can build an addition on to the house.” “And you, you’ll get my heart.” You see? I know how to live forever. This was never about your lawn. I like how long it is. I walk barefoot on it. But those days are behind me. I’m going to the future. I’m doing that inside of this robot shell.
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David Wojciechowski’s first book is Dreams I Never Told You & Letters I Never Sent (Gold Wake, 2017). Other poems can be found in Bateau, HAD, Jellyfish Poetry, Sporklet, and elsewhere. He can be found at davidwojo.com and on Twitter @MrWojoRising.
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image: MM Kaufman
Rejection Letters 