on my flight home they make an announcement
By Amanda Nicole Corbin
apparently the man seated in 3B
is flying his millionth mile with delta
so they give him a plaque and tell us to clap
meanwhile i race my eyeroll to heaven
meanwhile the man in 3B is front-plane anonymous
so i picture him as a beige bucket hat jones
swatting flies from the green georgia jungle
meanwhile he probably wears leather-crisped suits
has an office rimmed with leather-bound books
presses wrinkles out everything but himself
meanwhile the bathroom clucks and tuts behind me
meanwhile i’m thinking about the times i clap
when my son stumbles and falls
how he claps because he sees me clap
meanwhile i’m doing this so he forgets to cry
meanwhile i don’t know how to say for your own good
other than through slatted teeth
meanwhile i’m still settling down from the initial fear
of unexpected news on a post-9/11 plane
meanwhile 3B is first class
meanwhile i’m thinking i don’t like being told when to clap
meanwhile i’ve flown first class before
meanwhile in economy i’m calculating things in millions
like how the heart monitor i wore for two weeks
counted 1,407,103 heartbeats
and found 0 useful data points
and cost god knows how much money
meanwhile delta.com says i have only 998,000 miles to go
meanwhile the man in 3B gets an award for sitting
and spending someone else’s money
probably
meanwhile i do that every day of my life
meanwhile i still clap for the man in 3B
i just don’t like being told i should
About the Author
Amanda Nicole Corbin is an award-winning Ohio-based poet who has had her work published or forthcoming in The Notre Dame Review, Contemporary Verse II, The London Magazine, Door is a Jar, Palette Poetry, and more. She is the winner of the 2025 Mississippi Review Poetry contest and her work was nominated for Best Microfiction 2024 & 2025. Her debut full-length collection, addiction is a sweet dark room, was published by Another New Calligraphy in 2024. You can find her playing Magic the Gathering or on Instagram, Threads, and Bluesky.
