Unafraid

I’m not afraid
I have my tasks to pass the time
I keep a monthly calendar
Hang up my clothes at night
And like a pilgrim to a shrine
Appear every ten days
At the washing machine

Month after month
I welcome the cleaning woman
And I freely admit
I delight at the gleaming
Washstand that she leaves

Deep in the dead of winter
I count the days to spring
While ambivalently
Savoring the coming snow
And what is more precious
Than a steaming soup to take
The chill from one’s bones

I would drink
But my doctor forbids it
Leap but my leg is lame
And were it not for my breathing
I’d be without complaint

At night I keep my clock in view
And from time to time
I check its progress toward the dawn
I feel a small uncertainty
Not really fear
Just a vague suspicion

I’d rather be awake

1/6-2/11/96, 6/22/98, 10/7/07

Copyright 1996, 2007 by Maurice Leiter

Posted with permission.