Toto
Teachers aren’t supposed
To have favorites.
But to hell with it,
My favorite is Toto.
Progress
Over a year-
Speaking to screens
And tiny boxed faces
Pushing words around
The vertical page,
Flattening the world
Into a screen share,
Sending my voice
Into the void------
I spend the sun bright morning
Unpacking a recent costume donation
A Christmas morning of airing out
Someone else’s dreams
Sixty year old handsewn sequined
Razzle dazzle let’s put on a show
Heart and soul for all to see
One show stopper after another
And there it is-
A shimmering pearlescent
Ivory beaded flapper dress
That makes its own light
Just the right size
Just what was needed.
I hang it on the rack
next to Glinda’s name
and say to myself-
now we’re getting somewhere.
_______
Ask just ask
The lesson I cannot seem to learn
I put out a list of things
Needed for the show
Items I don’t have or can’t find
Tasks that need other hands.
I tack it on to the
Weekly rehearsal reminder
Sent out on Sunday afternoon
As it occurs to everyone at once
That a Monday morning looms.
Within minutes offers land like
Cards laid down by a Vegas dealer-
I can help paint
I can help sew if it’s by hand
I found these masks for you
What about these Fez hats for the flying monkeys?
Ordered and on their way, you should have them in two days.
Dizzying, the generosity of our little world.
So I’m giving it a shot
Since I may be on a roll.
World- can you send me a companion
For this my third act?
Kind and funny
Wicked when it suits us
Able to read my handwriting
Prospering and generous,
Good with all things money,
Good with all the things I hate,
Open hearted as an old explorer,
Odysseus after he’s planted his oar.
Maybe throw in a home in New Zealand
Or Prince Edward Island?
Oh, and let him be patient,
Eternally patient,
With my blistered heart
As it gets used to safety,
Gets used to the feeling of home.
The Fox at Dawn 
great trust in the universe pays off! I hope it always will,I hope all that and more for you and your open heart!
Comment by Jen Grove April 21, 2021 @ 1:23 pm