A Bedtime Story

By John Grey

fall 2020

I tell my child

a bedtime story

in which

the wise king

and munificent queen

are burned to

a crisp by dragons,

the handsome prince

is decapitated

during sword-fight practice,

the beautiful princess

dies of the plague

and an ogre

moves into the castle.

My child bursts

into tears.

He’s upset that

I forgot the part

where the

lovely white horse

is eviscerated

by trolls.

John Grey is an Australian poet, US resident. Recently published in Soundings East, Dalhousie Review and Qwerty with work upcoming in West Trade Review, Willard and Maple and Connecticut River Review.

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