i once told a boy
that i searched for my own castle,
where the skies were sewn
from only the warmest of fabrics.

this boy asked what
this castle should look like,
were he the king
of it,

and i told him it would be
small and stout and not
at all what i wanted for my life.

and he, despite my description
of the kingdom i cared to lead,
the policies i’d enact as my own queen
of my own castle,
without the assistance
of him or others,

he, instead, showed to me
a picture of his tallest tower,

though i did not ask.

“oh haha”

————

Grace Marshan is not yet related to any U.S. president. She currently resides in California.