R. Johnson

after the fact

They shot the bear. 
It wasn’t my fault
I told them not to shoot
 
I just didn’t want him
nosing about
wrecking my garden
turning over the cans 
 
They shot the bear.
I just wanted him gone
I wasn’t about
to confront him
on my own
 
I mean, how can you have a bear
even half grown like this one
stinky, all teeth and claws
wandering in and out of your yard
whenever it feels?
 
Bears were here first
says my bleeding-heart sister.
So, should I just board up
my house and move  away?
 
They shot the bear.
It wasn’t my gun
it wasn’t my finger
on the trigger
I couldn’t even stand to watch

R. Johnson’s poems have appeared in a number of journals including Arc, Descant, Malahat Review, Prairie Fire and Grain. He is the author of a chapbook, Uninvited Winter (Alfred Gustav Press, 2018).