Finding the Way Through the Poem
by Beth Weaver-Kreider

All these keys at my fingertips.
Which will open the door of the poem?
Which combination will turn this moment
from a frenzied search through random rooms
to a purposeful path through the maze?

Most days, I just begin opening them,
door after door. Try this one, then this.
Sometimes, I find a rhythm, a pattern to follow,
a repetition, a thread of idea.

Or, like now, I feel myself reaching
the dead-end of the hallway,
time is running out,
the patterns are tangling,
and I have missed the essential clue.

I’m not looking for a way out.
I’m looking for the way through.

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Gratitude List:
1. My students. They’re witty, charming, thoughtful, wise, intelligent, brave, resilient. . . I have so much to learn from them.
2. Livestreams from African water holes.
3. I’m trying to keep my glucose levels under control. Today I realized that one savored bite of a Stroopy is actually almost as good as snarfing down a whole one.
4. Feeling more confident in my body.
5. Painting with watercolors.
May we walk in Beauty!