Lip Service by Daniel Romo

 

Image | Fadi Imane

Lip Service

Someone says what you want to hear so you call it a 

day like old bread that’s edible yet not an ideal meal 

because settling for crumbs is the Poorman’s validation 

in the same way sweet nothings live up to their name. 

We take things to heart most when we’re hollow and 

hungry, so customers order ahead and mobile orders 

pile up at the coffee shop where anyone can walk 

away with a drink that’s not theirs. But some kind 

of honor system exists in a world of caffeine and 

convenience—thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s 

wife or latte. The church next door to me just installed 

a new fence to keep people off their property, but isn't 

sealing off sanctity the opposite of what Jesus wants? 

I ate a burrito for lunch while watching college football 

on January 2nd because win or lose, the day after any 

holiday is just as celebratory, worthy of a hearty bean 

and cheese type of communion. The are days when 

our heads fall into prayer or self-preservation, and 

what gets us through it all at times like this is the sort 

of unexplained pep talk we mysteriously get, as if a 

whispering in your ear that you can’t put into words 

but is like the bright side beginning to look up, like 

the sweet scent of yeast rising.

© Daniel Romo

Daniel Romo

Daniel Romo is the author of American Manscape (Moon Tide Press 2026), Bum Knees and Grieving Sunsets (FlowerSong Press 2023), Moonlighting as an Avalanche (Tebot Bach 2021), and other books. His work can be found in The Los Angeles Review, MAYDAY, Yemassee, and elsewhere. He received an MFA from Queens University of Charlotte, and he lives, writes, and rides his bikes in Long Beach, CA. More at danieljromo.com.

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