Identical
Which one of you is stronger? We stand in front of the traveling Taekwondo adjudicator Trying to get our yellow belt. My palms are sweating And I’m finding it hard to fill my lungs. The test is yet to start. The room smells like plywood and there are no windows. Our parents sit on fold-out chairs to our left. In first grade, Over the crackling elementary PA, It's his turn To lead the Pledge of Allegiance. The next day it’s mine. He has a lower voice. Then we’re at the doctor, Straining our backs against the cold stadiometer. I’m taller and I should be proud of that. We’re in junior high, I love to wear my new glasses; Everyone knows who I am. He gets glasses in high school, The novelty has worn off.
It’s the first day of school again.
How can I tell you apart?
He has a mole above his lip,
I have a scar on my forehead.
He’s better at math,
I’m better at reading,
But we’re neck-and-neck for spelling,
Or so we’ve been told.
He has a higher ACT score,
But I have a higher GPA.
Which one of you is stronger?
In the dusty Taekwondo room, he raises his hand.
The adjudicator laughs.
He passes the test.
I don’t.
Jordon Perkins is a sophomore at Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota, where he double-majors in English Writing and Communication Studies. His work has previously been published in Afterwork and Prairie Margins. Jordon grew up in Maxwell Township, Minnesota, and is a regular at Taco Bell.
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