Rook Rainsdowne

Poetry

Rook Rainsdowne is a poet currently attending Eastern Washington University’s MFA program. They have been previously published in Fifth Wheel Press, ANMLY, and #EnbyLife, among other wonderful publications. They are a co-founding editor of COOP: chickens of our poetry, and Croak, two small magazines dedicated to publishing art and literature about chickens and frogs respectively. You can find more of their work at rookrainsdowne.com.

Doing Everything Right

I do the right thing. Stay in the right lane till everyone has passed. Avoid eating too much meat. Hold out my hands for rain and my tongue for snow even when I’m left dry. I tell the kids their art is beautiful and sometimes it is. I get in my car, drive to the nearest fast-food place, get the number one, eat it silently in the parking lot. American tradition. I like traditions. I dress up for Halloween and dress nice on Sundays though I don’t go to church anymore. I honk when crossing state lines, hold my breath through tunnels, lift my feet when driving over cattle guards. I do the right thing. I wait for you to see how right I am. I wait for you to see how right I am for you.

“ This poem is an exploration of the frustration I feel at how my own desire to be loved motivates even seemingly innocuous, selfless, and/or private actions. It's like I'm putting on a performance even in the privacy of my own car in the middle of nowhere. What's up with that! I'd like to dedicate this poem to the kids I taught at art camp last summer who may have actually taught me more than I taught them, which is one of those clichés that are usually true. ”

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