little dogs

by Sydney Hegele

♰

He finds me
in the gray cold wet
of early Lent, half-full

on floor crumbs
and discount fish
wishing I loved

less.

Why do you ask me to call you if you know you aren’t going to answer?

I like the sound
of your voice, I confess.
I know you want
me. But I need
to hear you
say it.

♰

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Sydney Hegele is an Anglo-Catholic fiction writer, poet, and essayist. They are the author of THE PUMP (Invisible Publishing 2021), winner of the 2022 ReLit Literary Award, and a finalist for the 2022 Trillium Book Award.