Another man’s list:
impressed by wet boots
into the pavement
of a parking deck
on a Tuesday.
The author,
by now,
unseen and unknown,
shuffled off the coil.
His orders
since discarded in the marching–
a fleeting, transient
monument
to his duty.
.
The words are
simple,
cryptic, and
pragmatic.
They describe
a morning errand,
a quick task,
a domestic
or professional
obligation.
Maybe the writing is his,
but the words are
his wife’s,
his co-worker’s,
his master’s.
Here lies the record of
an act of kindness,
a fence mended,
or a bet lost,
a debt repaid.
.
We write out
on paper
that which we
do not trust
our mind
to hold.
Times, dates,
quantities,
instructions,
directions,
brands, names,
shapes, colors, and sizes.
Our lists remind us,
guide us,
and help us.
They pull us by the nose,
and they push us
to completion,
to fulfillment,
to the end of our days.
February 13, 2021
Flagstones 