I dream every night that Mozart

mocks my ability to play

a Dsus4 chord and he

laughs and shakes

and points 

his left little

finger wagging

it like a tuning fork 

resonating a frequency

I will never hear

and in the morning 

I sit holding my guitar 

trembling

not a little

at the fingering 

of the chord

and the weight of the instrument

but I play the fucking

thing and then

I laugh

too

because he’s right.

Dave O’Leary is a writer and musician in Seattle. He’s had two novels published and has published work in, among others, Slate.com, Versification, and Reflex Fiction. His collection of poetry and prose — I Hear Your Music Playing Night and Day — will be published in May 2021 by Cajun Mutt Press.

Twitter: @dolearyauthor