My Romance with Time
Each morning. Every morning.
Wake and name the day.
Check the sheets for dreams.
Stretch like I have
all forever.
Parade thru this temple of
mini museums disguised as
artifacts from other times.
Greet them all.
Let them know you.
Breathe like it’s my first time.
Every time.
And the time after that.
Flood the house with light.
Go out and call it
if it comes to that.
All permissions
have been granted.
Place all next steps
planned well in advance
in shuffle mode.
Sweep them in and out.
From here on,
only successes.
Do this. Do that.
Dither
delightedly.
From now on,
only tics:
this that
this that
this that
*
Inside the sci-fi museum
first thing, we are asked
to lie about our age.
Then, pick a planet
other than this one,
let it adopt you.
the first level is moon walks
via bungee cords and vests.
The next level is gravity free.
the whole middle part
is a parade of you, in
various alien bodies.
Holograms at the gift shop.
in the back, you exit
in your own escape pod of surprise
with a world full of secrets
written only for you
by a Project X.
the black hole pulls you out
and puts you on the street of
an exact replica of all you once knew
that was completely destroyed
while you were inside.
You find out it was a onetime deal
and the entrance has been hidden.
oh, and you were promoted
to the rank of
Survivor Commander.
Mark Kessinger was born in Huntington WV, attended college at Cleveland State University, lived in Oklahoma City and now resides in Houston TX. He is a two-year recipient of a creative writing scholarship from CSU, a founding member and president of the Houston Council of Writers, and former editor of Voices from Big Thicket. His poetry has appeared in many publications and four anthologies.
Author of The Exploded View, published by Cleveland State Press.
Author of The Book of Joe published by Cleveland State Press.
Contributor for From Both Sides Now, edited by Phillip Mahony.
Contributor for Inheritance of Light, edited by Ray Gonzalez.
The Longest Possible Light– Voices of Cleveland: Bicentennial Anthology
amazon.com/author/mark-kessinger