Yuxing Xia - Candy Bar

Yuxing Xia is an author and poet who has been published in 10 different countries in journals and magazines such as Society of Classical Poets, Strong Verse, and many others. He hopes to retire to an ostrich farm.

                  Candy Bar
​

1. I knew you were eyeing

that candy bar I saved
in my back pocket. I motioned
to take a nap with eyes half-open
while you stared at the TV, waiting
for me to sleep.
 

1. We continued our stalemate

until we both fell awake
into this cruel world
where there we could only have one
candy bar per family.
My dear brother,
you never considered I would eat it all
the day before and leave
a candy wrapper full of toilet paper.
 

1. I still remember

when you lusted after that taste
of processed sugar.
I wonder what our parents think
when we meet again
on opposing sides of a world war
and we wrestle over a country flag
like it was full of sugar, those chemicals
that change adults back into kids again.
On the playground
of bullets and mortar shells,
we dance to the sound
of crumbling sand castles
and play tag in blood puddles.
The decade-old candy aftertaste
will never be sweet again
no matter how long we try
to hold on.