16

my grandfather was both tall and strict

he did not alter his habits to young children

dinners of asparagus and boiled eggs

but sometimes mussels or lobsters or little steamer clams

in the mornings baileys with jam

and pulling up rocks from the wall

to look for newts or in the field in between the mountains

to catch butterflies and grasshoppers with wings

in the town over the bridge of flowers

my mother would stop to tell us about some flower

or the reason for some herb but we would want to hurry to

climb down the stairs and jump

the whole family would be down there with the dam for the river

and in between water and smoothly rounded rocks
-Hannah

in corridors neatly-spaced seats stand close
fluorescent lights overhead flickering
stale air cycles through large overhead vents

leafing through pages, words begin to blur
rows of faces, each with eyes (none I know)
bags tucked under seats, idle hands fidget
heads tilt up, impatient to move along

inclined to panic, inclined with closed eyes
the pain of pressure, engines drown out sounds
drifting through thoughts, hours pass by slowly
so many paths meet to share in waiting

orange and white flicker miles away
lights grow smaller as the world grows bigger
-KM