This year’s Poem as presented by West Hollywood Poet Laureate was created collaboratively with 53 West Hollywood residents and visitors.
the sunset strip
echoes. jacarandas bloom bright
after barren months.
our streets will symphony again
wild beyond gardens,
blaze honey disco
french horns & orange sherbet glow.
you, dear, never stopped
being a proud march, a palm
frond in ragged wind —
yes, you curled up
in last winter’s hush.
this city threads our lonely
heartbeats, a plastic oasis of skin
sweaty in starlight.
but now it’s time for
gogo boots & guitar strings,
rooftop pools & history between your lips
like a cold margarita
while the hot asphalt
dances!
west hollywood a song:
equal parts party and protest.
one sings into the other.
it’s time to line each boulevard anew
with our delicious strangeness,
to glitter every tree.
won’t you walk with me?
my glam aunts, my ferocious uncles,
my frankest friends — my chosen family,
look at all that we have lost
and all that survives.
