O:JA&L Poetry: All forms & styles
James Croal Jackson
Irritant
My right eye itches, is red, a lash
in it? –unseen, in the corner, flood
of tears, biological reaction– love,
or lust (for now), pointer finger
teams with thumb to make make-
shift skin tweezers, pushing the
closed eye, forcing something
out– you told me yesterday you
have no ill will toward me– no
object, only words and the past,
still this entire quadrant of face
is in overdrive, sensing wrong,
flush dust, please, a small thank
you¸ a sigh, some relief.
About the writer:
James Croal Jackson is a Filipino-American poet working in film production. His latest chapbook is A God You Believed In (Pinhole Poetry, 2023). Recent poems are in ITERANT, Stirring, and The Indianapolis Review. He edits The Mantle Poetry from Nashville, Tennessee.
Image: Hindsight (AI-assisted digital image) by O:JA&L staff creative. 2025. Public domain via MidJourney AI.
OJAL Art Incorporated, publishing since 2017 as OPEN: Journal of Arts & Letters (O:JA&L) and its imprints Buttonhook Press, HOT BUTTON PRESS Contemporary Issues, and HIGH BUTTON PRESS Contemporary Art, supports writers and artists worldwide.
Explore O:JA&L’s Buttonhook Press offerings on Amazon.
Subscribe to the O:JA&L YouTube channel.
Become an O:JA&L Member through Patreon.
Follow O:JA&L on Facebook.
Support Pamelyn Casto’s text for writers: Flash Fiction: Alive in the Flicker
Support O:JA&L’s free presses.
