Derek Mong
O h i o—
—an etymology
comes to us from oh hello
Which some believe to mean “I am in a state
Of abbreviated greeting,” i.e.: she blinks, I wave,
She winks before the Erie snow
Can melt upon my glasses. Other Ohio
Examples: gravel strafed by headlights, a shield
Of green seen from a cockpit. Explanation two
Contends Ohio grew into a double ode
From a sole, initial blooper: uh oh—
Oh oh, oh ooooh my home can speed into a love
Cry or a lyric! Is such ecstasy dubious
when its first note foreshadows
Its finale? Like adolescents and army time, zeroes
Frame all of Ohio’s encounters. In fact, some think
We split off from a whisper which went creasing
Through the prairie: I ow a— O hi o—
Sisters till a glacier cleaved them? Oh
No, not so. Ohio’s as indivisible as amber waves
From rusted pickups. For instance, I have traced
My state’s origin back to this abiding sorrow:
It’s night, I’m driving with my windows
Down, the cold’s encircling my collar. I swear
The earth below me begins to swell and drop
Like three syllables stretched into four low
Then lower letters. The sky goes blank with snow.
I drove and drove into the pages of Ohio.
