the first poem emerged while
sitting in the st louis university library
between classes.
it was usually cool and quiet
there and as an older student surrounded
by kids (really)
became a sort of refuge
from hormones and the oppressive
mid-september heat.
on fridays from the lobby’s
windows you had a wonderful view of boys
toilet-papering
a row of maple tress across
the lane clearly many beers into another
lost weekend.
but who can blame them
since i was (really) no different when
serving overseas.
but i digress (something
i happen to be really good at, truth
be told). so, while
sitting on a second floor
sofa lost in thought with memories of her
words emerged
that seemed to me (really)
worth putting down on paper just to see
where they led.
and they led somewhere
sad and sweet and beautiful in seven
simple lines
about tears
rolling down her cheek.
(really).
