RESOLVE

Your hair smelled like tulips. We saw life-sized butter sculptures of Elvis Presley and a cow.
People scarfed down enormous turkey drumsticks and rode Ferris wheels for hours on end. We
talked about the future. You were glad to be helping sick people and saw yourself doing so for
decades. I was excited to paint my first commissioned mural. You shook your head. I rolled up
my sleeves. 

Joey Nicoletti’s most recent books are Breakaway (Broadstone Books, 2023) and Extinction Wednesday: A Memoir (Bordighera Press, 2024). Joey is also the Reviews Editor of Voices in Italian Americana (VIA) and teaches creative writing at Buffalo State University. Connect with him on Insta @joeynicoletti and Bluesky @joeynicoletti.bsky.social.