Texas Flood 2024

Jeffrey L. Taylor and Janelle Curlin-Taylor

July 21, 2024

“Well, it’s floodin’ down in Texas.
All of the telephone lines are down,”
Gulf to Vermont.

Power out.  No A/C.
People are angry.
“Do not drive,”
says the Houston mayor.
Manual can openers
are back in style.

“…tryin’ to call my baby.
Lord, I can’t get a single sound.”

Friends and family with power,
only hope for hot meals,
telling others you survived.

“Do not travel at night.”
Traffic lights out.  Flood waters
hiding in the dark.

“It’s about to drive me insane.”

Jeffrey L. Taylor is a retired Software Engineer.  Around 1990, poems started holding his sleep hostage.  He has been published in The Perch, California Quarterly, Texas Poetry Calendar, and Texas Poetry Assignment. Janelle Curlin-Taylor is descended from several generations of Texas poets. Her poetry has appeared in the di-verse-city Anthology, Blue Hole, Best Austin Poetry 2018 - 2019, Waco WordFest Anthology 2020, Texas Poetry Calendar 2021, Texas Poetry Assignments, the Lone Star Poetry anthology from Texas Poetry Assignment, and Voices de la Luna. She is married to California poet Jeffrey Taylor.