Overmomed

a wilting orchid 
brought by an empty classroom:
symbol of my month

or this calendar 
hiding (not hiding) events
never. ending. tasks.

Best Valentine Date

vaccine Valentine 
does love get any better
than this science?

i’ll grasp this aspen 
framed by its own starry night
when i need some peace

an exhausting day
with my spirit-week “jersey”
and this fake smile

hidden by these masks
that have broken our world
like a rootless orchid

but this cat. this cat.
a soft purrfection presence 
worth a real grin.

a powder escape
from the harsh reality
of everyday life

powder power pulls
relentlessly through the snow
bringing us to light

not what i had planned
(before we were so broken)
yet bright, all the same

quarantine café
ready for any work day
(insomniac’s dream)

trapped behind two masks, 
we’re at the pandemic’s will:
all screens. no faces.

snow arrived today.
soft, slippery, it snuck in
and brought back this piece:

in the purple night
on our perfect patio
completion beckons.

a small redemption

when the pieces fit in place

so rarely perfect