99

almost there! I’m so close
I can taste it. that sweet sweet
milestone that I made up
to make myself feel accomplished
that will immediately be replaced
by a new milestone (200!)
as soon as this is posted, because
I had ninety-nine
poems “published” (on Facebook)
this year and this one
will be #100.

(though several
have since been taken off-line
by me
due to embarrassment, feeling like
they’re too mean, or not good enough
or all three. do those
really count?
should I make them visible again
even though I don’t really still
subscribe to their beliefs
or stand by all of their
statements?)

last year I wrote nine, which was
eight more than I wrote
the year before. now, eleven times
that! the symmetry of these
meaningless numbers pleases
me.

the sky’s the limit! that is,
as long as I don’t decide to rest
on my sweet sweet
laurels.