GROWING UP GAY IN VILLA PARK, ILLINOIS, 1968
I couldn’t let the other kids know.
Teachers? No thanks.
“Nixon’s The One” on their bumpers.
In church I had the right smile.
Villa Avenue, lined with Dutch Elm trees,
a leafy canopy over commuters
in cars and kids riding bicycles.
Prom? I wanted to invite Troy.
He didn’t want to be shoved
in a locker upside down.
I tried to hide
in every sidewalk crack.
Hiding gets dangerous.
You can die from it.
And no one would even know.