The Best Seat

V. PAIGE PARKER

May 26, 2020

the one in the last row

the one in the middle

the one that does not recline

the one next to the bathroom

the one for twelve hours

the one that the poor old woman

in the airport could not take to Dublin

the one that almost did not exist

until an extra flight was added

the one that was quickly sanitized

upon boarding

the one that countless people wanted

but could not get

the one that was hoped for

in the face of fear

the one escaping the coronavirus

the one on the last flight

out of Egypt

V. PAIGE PARKER is a married homemaker with five children, living in San Antonio.  For the past two years she has served as the Vice President of SAPA – the San Antonio Poetry Association.  She won first place in SAPA’s April 2020 “Poet’s Choice” contest with this poem, “The Best Seat.”