Teen English Division - First Prize - Christel Warren (Chicopee)
Hell Only Has One Window
Christmas Eve.
five hours in & it's no less than Hell.
the walls are so bare
& there's only one window --
there's only one window
& it's in the wrong place.
Satan's footsteps sound like velcro
as he crosses the kitchen floor,
& he finally feels at home.
he doesn't care who he had to ruin;
he's got the nicest room in the house
& best of all, there's no traffic here.
"Satan, if there's no traffic,
then why did I just hear someone blow their horn?" I asked.
"shut up, you horrible little brat," the devil replied.
10:30 with no dinner & no music.
orange lights & possessed pay phones
& forgetting to say "I love you".
fidgety cats & missing doorknobs
& heaters that are too hot.
I can't find a place to hang my wind chimes from.
just as well, because wind chimes would
look strange in Hell, anyway.
broken pens & broken hearts
& hunger for food
& hunger for things you left behind.
Satan strolls about,
his ugly chest bare --
his belly sitcks out like a pig's.
"are you crying?" he asks conversationally.
emotional outbursts & walking fast up hills
so that your shadow won't see you frown.
change of plans, cardboard boxes,
& keys that open doors
without fitting in the locks.
forgetting to add water
to the "just add water" juice
& not having enough hangers
& missing life every time you see
the red bathroom rug beneath your feet
as you step on it in your socks
which are the exact same color.
this is Hell
& Hell only has one window
& two doors --
one leads to a closet
& the other is always open
so Satan can see in.
