It’s 8:30 pm. I become aware of the cold
Temperature of the station bench through
My clothing. The train’s headlight appears
On the track, a distant sun blinking so far off
There is no warmth from its rays.
The feeling draws me back to our afternoon
Meeting announcement that a re-organization
Is about to disorganize my life and reveal
Accumulated dust in its corners
It’s funny how one sentence can tighten temples,
Add pepper and vinegar to a fresh cup of coffee
And suck all the air from the room at the same time.
These moments come out of the mist,
Bringing a chilly foul odor with a perfume label.
An appointment with insomnia placed before
Me with the dash of a stiff smile
Back at my desk, my attention creeps over
To the upside. I recalled insomnia visiting me with
Increased frequency over the past two years.
Let me see: demands, aching hands and insomnia
Versus insomnia and a new start. The cup before
Me was suddenly half full. It is not too sweet, but it
Has some cream.
B.M.C.
(First published in Poetry Letter and Literary Review, CSPS)
Beverly M. Collins is the author of the books, Quiet Observations: Diary Thought, Whimsy and Rhyme and Mud in Magic. Her works have also appeared in California Quarterly, Poetry Speaks! A year of Great Poems and Poets, The Hidden and the Divine Female Voices in Ireland, The Journal of Modern Poetry, Spectrum, The Altadena Poetry Review, Lummox, The Galway Review (Ireland), Verse of Silence (New Delhi), Peeking Cat Poetry Magazine (London), Scarlet Leaf Review (Canada), The Wild Word magazine (Berlin), Indigomania (Australia) and more.