Kelli Russell Agodon

Hoover

To you, my heart beats backwards
sucking up love and holding it
captive in the double-lined bag
you can't seem to dump.

If you asked me, I'd unzip
and open the places where I keep
secrets and dust-bunnies, stray scraps
of fabric and pennies, but you

Want your love back,
as if I could find it mixed in with the dirt
I pick up daily, the back of an earring,
the confetti we danced under last New Year's.

Why don't you buy a newer model,
one with a light that can see what it collects,
a self-propelling motor and reusable bags,
so easy to push and empty when


You're done.

Kelli Russell Agodon has had work published in Calyx, Switched-On Gutenberg, Crab Creek Review, Pontoon #3, Arnazella and other publications. She is a graduate of the University of Washington's Creative Writing Program and lives in Kingston, WA - a small seaside town- with her husband, 3 cats and a greyhound. Her favorite color is plaid.

Email Kelli at [email protected].

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