(line)

Oh, how I want that line
to return
the one which came in
a sleepy daze
and left before I was motivated
to reach for a pen
I repeated it over and over
until I was sure
I had it fastened in memory
where has it gone?
what errant thought
will unlock?

I sit in the rocking chair
and wait.
I stare into the fire
thinking I need to clean
the ashes from the stove.
I contemplate the hypnotic
quality of the music
the dullness of hte light.

I comment on the size of the cat’s feet
as he walks across the room.
Watch my husband return
the trash can to the side
of the house,
cars pass on the street.

I decide what kind of candle holders
to buy,
how to pack away the Christmas ornaments.

And all this time I cannot unlock
the thing I am trying to find
and it does not come back to me.

There are not always second chances
though I myself prefer to believe
the I ching
that if it is your horse
it will come back
The trouble is
I’ve never owned a horse,
so I know he isn’t
looking for me now.
But the line,
is it knocking
on somebody else’s door.

1/7/97