[{"poem":{"title":"Five Murders","text":"\u003Cblockquote\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cem\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003E\u003Csup\u003Efor Sonja Larson, Christina Powell, Christa Hoyt, Tracy Paules, and Manny Taboada\u003C\/sup\u003E\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/em\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cem\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003E\u003Csup\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;August 24\u201327, 1990\u003C\/sup\u003E\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/em\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003EIt was my first week as a college student.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003EI\u2019d traveled with friends\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003Eto the relative unknown\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003Eof Gainesville: density of trees,\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003Epropensity for Spanish names.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003EThis was the University of Florida.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003EI didn\u2019t know about Florida.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003EBut always a diligent student,\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003EI memorized the names\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003Eof my fit dormitory friends:\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003Ethey stirred, like the trees,\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003Emy desire for the unknown.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003EThen a darkness unknown\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003Esettled on Florida.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003ELike cicadas in the trees,\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003Ethere was a buzz about a student\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003Efound dead. And my concerned friends?\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003EI called their names\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003Ewhen more names\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003Ewere reported, cause unknown.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003EWould one of my friends\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003Ebe next? This was Florida.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003EAnother student\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003Ewas buried under the trees.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003EI couldn\u2019t see for the trees\u2014\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003Ethe growing list of names,\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003Ethe next slaughtered student,\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003Eand the terror of an unknown\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003Eas airless and new as Florida.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003EI curled under covers with friends\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003EI suspected might not be friends.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003ESpanish moss choked the trees:\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003Eomens were everywhere in Florida.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003EIn four days, five names.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003EAnd then it stopped, quantity unknown,\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003Ein my second week as a college student ...\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003EAnd now? The trees, my absent friends,\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003Ea defaced mural on 34th of student names.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022long-line\u0022\u003EFlorida, unknown, remains.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E","soundcloud":"\u003Ciframe width=\u0022100%\u0022 height=\u0022300\u0022 scrolling=\u0022no\u0022 frameborder=\u0022no\u0022 allow=\u0022autoplay; encrypted-media\u0022 src=\u0022https:\/\/w.soundcloud.com\/player\/?url=https%3A\/\/api.soundcloud.com\/tracks\/soundcloud%3Atracks%3A2375740100%3Fsecret_token%3Ds-p1PaXaVZnTJ\u0026color=%23ff5500\u0026auto_play=false\u0026hide_related=false\u0026show_comments=true\u0026show_user=true\u0026show_reposts=false\u0026show_teaser=true\u0026visual=true\u0022\u003E\u003C\/iframe\u003E\u003Cdiv style=\u0022font-size: 10px; color: #cccccc;line-break: anywhere;word-break: normal;overflow: hidden;white-space: nowrap;text-overflow: ellipsis; font-family: Interstate,Lucida Grande,Lucida Sans Unicode,Lucida Sans,Garuda,Verdana,Tahoma,sans-serif;font-weight: 100;\u0022\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/soundcloud.com\/poets-org\u0022 title=\u0022Academy of American Poets\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022 style=\u0022color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;\u0022\u003EAcademy of American Poets\u003C\/a\u003E \u00b7 \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/soundcloud.com\/poets-org\/randall-mann-five-murders\/s-p1PaXaVZnTJ\u0022 title=\u0022Randall Mann: \u201cFive Murders\u201d\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022 style=\u0022color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;\u0022\u003ERandall Mann: \u201cFive Murders\u201d\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E","uuid":"24151a52-7874-4faa-9dab-c2e1262b7796","alias":"\/poem\/five-murders","attribution":"\u003Cp\u003ECopyright \u00a9 2026 by \u003Cspan\u003ERandall Mann\u003C\/span\u003E. Originally published in Poem-a-Day on August 13, 2026, by the Academy of American Poets.\u003C\/p\u003E","about":"\u003Cp\u003E\u201cIn August 1990, when I went to college at the University of Florida, a serial killer murdered five people in Gainesville. This is dedicated to their memory.\u201d\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cem\u003E\u2014Randall Mann\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E","vertical":null},"poet":{"name":"Randall Mann","alias":"\/poet\/randall-mann","image":"https:\/\/api.poets.org\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/poem_a_day_portrait\/public\/images\/biographies\/RandallMann_NewBioImage_0.png?itok=5k6bFWUg"}}]