Any Other Time



Home from work,
I went looking for
Peace and quiet to
Lighten the burden of
Another busy work day.

Instead I found
Tension and turmoil:
Laissez-faire focus plus
Lackadaisical planning
Equaled a mother’s
Lost temper upon
Our wayward child.

Any other time,
I’d be the U.N.,
Brokering peace
Between the factions,
But today was different.

I slipped on my shoes and
Zipped up my jacket,
Leaving my hearth
Without another word,
In search of elusive serenity.

Any other time,
I’d guide my van
Into the evening traffic
Without an afterthought,
But today was different.

Instead, I walked down
Neighborhood streets
While struggling to
Comprehend and contemplate
How reality looks like concrete
But is every bit as fluid as
The rain flowing from my eyes.

I approached a pizza shop and
Thought to walk in for
A swallow or several of beer;
Any other time, I would have,
But today was different.

Beyond that store was another
Whose doors I hadn’t broached
In what seemed like forever,
With artifacts and relics that
Let me journey to the past.

It was after six, and
Any other time,
The doors would be shuttered
For the night,
But today was different.

The shopkeeper was busy
Doing this and that,
But let me in just to browse;
We talked about music,
Speaking the language of
Small talk that got bigger
When she asked about me.

I needed to talk about me,
And she needed to listen,
Then we talked about her
While I kept my ear sharp;
Time passed so quickly,
As it always does when
Making a friend.

I turned to go home,
And any other time,
A wave and a smile
Would have sufficed,
But today was different;
We shared a hug and a cry
Before I trekked the streets
That took me back home.

By the time I got home,
My hands were quite cold,
But my soul was warm.

© 2008 by Robert E. Blackwell