Next in the Poem Series about Fall of 2005

September 1, 2005
No reason not to be transparent about what’s going on here

This transition to being a new teacher’s family is
tricky
From the first day I missed our old life more than I’d anticipated
Its leisure, its laughter, its easy happenstance
And while casting about for what pleasures there must be in the new one
(for surely there must be some)
I began to think I might find
enjoyment inherent in seeing
the mundane details of the day
So I started to look
and a million minutiae presented themselves
richness suddenly visible
everywhere

We have
the satisfying conjunction
of orange teapot, green spoon rest, yellow salt bowl
sitting together on the stove
while the mac and cheese from the purple box
cooks in the big new saucepan
The pale blue bowl of noodles with the silver fork thrown in
eaten at the dining table with my book propped against the fruit bowl
And the musty smell of its brittle brown old pages
while reading in bed with cool white sheets

This morning I took out the trash
(And as I came back into the apartment
the subtle aroma of our home met me on the threshold
That scent you always know
but rarely notice
Made up of paper and linens
and coffee and olive oil and vanilla and geranium
Pillows
Old sun
Hot water
Warm towels
Once inside of course I couldn’t smell it anymore)
and I made the bed, did the dishes, picked up the clothes from the floor
The earlier I get up
the more time I find to do tasks beyond the minimum
I like the feeling that I’m helping
I like the meditative lack of thought as the soapy water gets pushed around the big new saucepan
I like the window box
The perfect morning task is a mindless one
just staring out the window at the parsley

image source is here