Michael J. Kolb

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Prognosis

the doctor says failing
not failed
at least not yet
as if not yet
were mercy enough

my tea sits cooling
the string tag
folded over the rim
a small white flag
surrendering

i look deeply
into his mouth
how it refuses
to say dying

though some words
enter the room
with my name
already
inside them

Michael J. Kolb is a poet, educator, and archaeologist based in Colorado.  He writes across disciplines, exploring nature, memory, and illness, asking what we carry and what we leave behind. His collection What Keeps Me Looking Out the Window was a finalist for the 2026 Press 53 Award. His poems have appeared in The Shore, Third Wednesday, ONE ART, Sky Island Journal, Eunoia Review, San Antonio Review,  Trampoline, The Ekphrastic Review, and elsewhere. He lives with his family and dogs where the mountains, shoreline, and changing weather continually shape his sense of place. 

Find him on Instagram at @michaeljkolb and on Substack at substack.com/@michaeljkolb.