“How to Ask a Question” by Christian Adams
February 21, 2021
1 Trail blazing through his work, a student loses
himself to the sound of thoughts and inquiries
echoing throughout his skull, disregarding
exchanged pleasantries passing by that would only
encave him.
2 Blindly wandering the streets, a child loses
themselves, taking their time getting home,
asking the question of where it ever was, if
they wanted to be lost.
3 A juvenile wants to ask something unknown, a
question about being, but he just ends up forming
nihilistic realities in the back of his mind, which
occupy that space until he’s satisfied.
4. “There are no stupid questions”, said the broken
record resembling a professor all while the student
tore down the tower of confidence he’d established
before hearing some words from a wise old genius.
Christian Adams created this piece during a 2019/20 Writers in the Schools residency at Port Townsend High School with WITS Writer-in-Residence Gary Copeland Lilley. Read before Bill Bryson’s 2020/21 Literary Arts Series event on Sunday, February 21, 2021.