Jackpot

Jackpot

Flashing—

Sparkling—

On every corner, every wall—

Glittering reminders of wealth lost,

drainers of emotional currency,

convincing the defeated to win 

by any means necessary. 

Levers crank—

prayers for diamonds, 

dreams for cherries,

fingers crossed for sevens.

What’s there to see? 

What’s there to see

on rigged government-sanctioned slot machines?

Same big three for 656 days straight.

Big losses,

big fears,

big hate.

What’s the jackpot

that pops from the slot?

Charred memories of what this used to be—

a missile—

an M16.

Land of promise—

Swapped for city of sin,

with addictive friction spoon-fed

free in every shop.

A taste of bright tomorrows, 

big dreams on big land

built upon bigger graves.

Levers crank—

More bombs,

more starved,

more dead.

Jackpot!

Rigged government-sanctioned slot machines

dispense tomorrow’s shiny big regret.

Biography: Born and raised in Los Angeles, Michael Roque discovered his love for poetry and prose amid friends on the bleachers of Pasadena City College. Now he currently lives in the Middle East and is being inspired by the world around him. His poems have been published by literary magazines like North Dakota Quarterly, Cholla Needles, The Literary Hatchet and others.

Image: Unsplash, downloaded (https://unsplash.com/photos/a-city-street-filled-with-lots-of-tall-buildings-q1uN2nTJhm8) 10. 9. 2025.

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