All in by Louise Robertson
by Louise Robertson
It moves like three rocks
at the bottom of a book bag
and smells
like a dropped soda cup,
a torn open packet of barbeque sauce,
and a Yu Gi Oh card
fading on the dash.
It reminds me
of the kitten we found
mewing under the deck
as well as the kibble
used to lure him out.
Today, it floats me
to work, a carriage with
smudged windows displaying a vast
panorama
ahead. This slow chariot
handles the long
veer, a sharp cutover and—
oh god, what soft light fills
this space made of tin and fabric
reeking of youth’s
frankincense, sweat,
and myrrh.
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Louise Robertson’s poetry has appeared in New Ohio Review, Dialogist, Southern Florida Poetry Journal, and many other publications. It’s been nominated three times for the Best of the Net and twice for a Pushcart and earned numerous other accolades. Her second full-length book of poetry (Body. Voice. Mind. Mouth.) was released late 2025.
by Louise Robertson
There’s no point to
owning a fence. My bitch
chews under it, manic
for a possum. There’s
no point to the cross
beams reinforcing the fence,
my bitch parkours
to the top, to get at
a deer, her mud tracks
spattered up the planks of wood.
There’s no point to a leash, either,
when another dog passes.
My bitch bites the neck
of the strap and wrestles me.
Sure, she lies in the sun,
a quiet bitch next to my beach chair,
or gnaws (but gentle)
on my fingers. She must dream
of the jump that crests the fence,
or the tug that makes me drop the lead.
And maybe we both imagine that—
her stretching
in a dead run across the neighborhood,
terrifying and glorious.
Why the fence? Why the fence?
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Louise Robertson serves as the marketing director for Writers' Block Poetry Night in Columbus, OH. She counts among her many publications, awards, and honors a jar of homemade pickles she received for running a workshop as well as a 2018 Pushcart nomination (Open: A Journal of Arts and Letters) and a 2018 Best of the Net nomination (Flypaper).
