The Poetry Marathon

Coffee and Change

It was a long drive
and I was tired.
Not just physically,
but emotionally too.
My eyes began to droop
with the setting sun.
But like Robert Frost,
I’ve got miles to go
before I sleep.
So I pulled into a diner,
some shitty side of the road place
where the sign out front
and the waitress serving tables
were both burned out,
and I was right there with them.
I put two quarters on the counter
and asked for a large black coffee to go.
I hate black coffee.
I hate having to go go go go.
But, maybe the combination
of caffeine and bitterness
will help keep me awake.
The waitress winked at me
as she handed me my order.
With a grin,
I headed back on the road.
Just me
the smell of coffee and spare change
with a phone number scribbled
on my receipt.

I saw her, a puppy of white and beige
Her panting resembled a smile
Her cute little face tugged at my heart
She barked and whimpered and whined
for my attention
She clawed at the crate
I walked closer muttering no with each step
Her soulful eyes sized me up
And again there was the smile
My refusal to love was blown away
Gone with the wind
She is one of the best decisions I ever made
Meet Kya, my new best friend

Windows of hope

the promise of cleansing

elements appearing untouchable

protective barricades along

the narrow pathway

suddenly refusing passage

to the loading ramp

for shipwrecked lives

praying for rescue by the Ark

empty seats

fill the theater of reflection

souls lost to despair

unable to believe in Hope

their ship sails in another direction

while those who climb the barricades

believe rescue is coming

reach out to those

losing faith in Love that awaits

The Joy of Unseen Things

Unseen things in the air surround her
Like hummingbirds, too fast to notice,
Bringing beauty, colour, life.
Carrying her thoughts on the wind,
Casting daydreams in the air.

It is the smile on a stranger’s face,
Not knowing the reason,
The music in your head from nowhere,
The game that only makes sense
To the child playing.

In the sea, the sky, the stars,
She catches a glimpse
In the corner of her eye,
Future joys on their way,
Unseen, unheard. Felt forever.

Both start with letter c: coffee and change.

With both of them I start each day-

with a good coffee and with the hope

that I will change something that day,

that I will have a fresh start.

It’s true that I often disappoint myself,

but the good intention remains.

Coffee is for the brain and offers a temporary pleasure,

while change is related to will and can shape my future.

Do you also think about a new start while enjoying your coffee?

“The truth is out there”,

but the deepest one to find

is within yourself.

“No man is an island entire of itself;
every man is a piece of the continent,
a part of the main; if a clod be washed
away by the sea…”