St. John Minadeo

by Matthew Ussia

Whenever I see a crossing guard’s bright yellow raincoat,
I think of St. John Minadeo—
______the car, brakes failed, rolling out of control down Hazelwood Avenue;
_____________the driver, honking, flailing one arm out the window;
______John, pushing the last classmate out of the way—
___________________________)a split second before martyrdom.

Matthew Ussia is an English professor, writer, and thereminist from Pittsburgh. Matthew’s previous works have been featured in the Dreamers Anthology, Winedrunk Sidewalk, The Ekphrastic Review, and the Open Mic of the Air Podcast.

City of Asylum believes that All Pittsburghers are Poets. With the Poem of the Week series, we seek to increase the readership and appreciation of poetry locally by publishing poems written by residents of Allegheny County of all ages and levels of experience. In partnership with the Poetry Editors at Sampsonia Way Magazine, City of Asylum advances our mission to defend, celebrate, and build on creative freedom of expression. This project received a RADical ImPAct Grant from RAD (Allegheny Regional Asset District).