A Matter of Time
afterwards “If Life Is As Short As
Our Ancestors Insist It Is,
Why Isn’t Everything I Want
Already At My Feet”
Our Ancestors Insist It Is,
Why Isn’t Everything I Want
Already At My Feet”
I make it to Heaven at the end
of this life or the next I won’t request
too much of paradise, something simple
like an escort to see my grandmother
so I may assist her in the kitchen once more.
We will watch deer graze
early in the morning and afterwards
I will walk with grandpa down a street
lined with wisteria trees in perpetual bloom.
When we return from catching up
Grandma will have brought the Sunday gravy
to perfection, meatballs and manicotti,
blocks of Parmesan waiting for us.
Antipasto. Aunt Minnie and Uncle Joe
will be holding hands and Uncle Phil will
introduce me to his lady friend,
an angel he wooed. When we sit to eat
they’ll ask after my ex-wife
and for a moment sadness
will intrude on paradise.
of this life or the next I won’t request
too much of paradise, something simple
like an escort to see my grandmother
so I may assist her in the kitchen once more.
We will watch deer graze
early in the morning and afterwards
I will walk with grandpa down a street
lined with wisteria trees in perpetual bloom.
When we return from catching up
Grandma will have brought the Sunday gravy
to perfection, meatballs and manicotti,
blocks of Parmesan waiting for us.
Antipasto. Aunt Minnie and Uncle Joe
will be holding hands and Uncle Phil will
introduce me to his lady friend,
an angel he wooed. When we sit to eat
they’ll ask after my ex-wife
and for a moment sadness
will intrude on paradise.
Hanif Abdurraqib, born in 1983 in Columbus, Ohio, is an American poet, essayist, and cultural critic Wikipedia. He was originally named Hanif Willis‑Abdurraqib, a hyphenated surname reflecting his heritage, but he has since adopted the shorter, single‑name form Hanif Abdurraqib for his public and professional work Wikipedia+1. This is a common practice among artists and writers who simplify or rebrand their names for clarity, branding, or personal preference. Hi. I’m Hanif. I write poems. I write Things About Music. I am probably eating french fries.
