What If. . . .
you begin life again in a new land,
the land called Nursing Home? Imagine
a universe where nurses become rotating
planets and residents, bright stars constellating.
The notion is as shocking as kissing a frog,
don’t you think? Especially if you believe
you have a prince, straight and sure.
But you can relax with the thought:
your cells would still sputter out messages,
body to body, like woodpeckers tapping
codes. Strangely, the divine light
inside you would still give off light, even
on lightless nights. And a few sensitive
souls would certainly feel its warmth.
If you must embark on a new life
like Alice in Wonderland, don’t fret:
you will know exactly what to pitch and
what to keep the same way a fiery maple
heads straight toward winter.
However, your dear family, not knowing you
but one way, may sit and gaze or gasp
then recoil. Shock. Trust me, it will pass.
It always passes. And what they need
will come, perhaps as they read a page
from an intriguing book purchased
at a bookstore called Borders.
Pat Durmon
you begin life again in a new land,
the land called Nursing Home? Imagine
a universe where nurses become rotating
planets and residents, bright stars constellating.
The notion is as shocking as kissing a frog,
don’t you think? Especially if you believe
you have a prince, straight and sure.
But you can relax with the thought:
your cells would still sputter out messages,
body to body, like woodpeckers tapping
codes. Strangely, the divine light
inside you would still give off light, even
on lightless nights. And a few sensitive
souls would certainly feel its warmth.
If you must embark on a new life
like Alice in Wonderland, don’t fret:
you will know exactly what to pitch and
what to keep the same way a fiery maple
heads straight toward winter.
However, your dear family, not knowing you
but one way, may sit and gaze or gasp
then recoil. Shock. Trust me, it will pass.
It always passes. And what they need
will come, perhaps as they read a page
from an intriguing book purchased
at a bookstore called Borders.
Pat Durmon