A STORY. 109. A SLOW WAKING UP. AND LOVE POETRY.
You fell asleep. You know that because you’re waking up. You had no intention of falling asleep. And you have no memory of dozing off.
It’s taking you a few moments to pull yourself back to where you are. In the bookstore, where you haven’t been for a long time. In the comfy armchair. With MOMENTS on your lap. You look down.
Yes, you remember now. You were reading a poem about one foot standing on top of the other.
https://elsasemporium.com/own-two-feet.html
I stand on my own two feet
my left foot stands on my right
Hmmm.
You take a couple of nice slow breaths and yawn. You remember more. You had decided to go back to reading love poetry.
Is that what put you to sleep?
Or is it the snow and the cold?
There has been one snowstorm after another. You’ve stomped your way from the front door to the sidewalk and back, eventually making a narrow packed path in the snow. You know you’re supposed to shovel. And you own 2 shovels, plus an ice chopper from the time two decades ago when there was a huge ice storm. But for the most part you avoid shoveling. The snow always melts eventually.
Not right now.
Tonight the temerature is supposed to go down to minus 30, taking into account the wind chill factor.
But for now you are nice and comfortable in the old stuffed armchair.
There’s time for a bit of love poetry, you decide, before heading back into the cold.
You close MOMENTS with a bit of a muffled snap.
Love Poems for You is right there, on top of the short pile of books on the small low table beside you. You reach for it, pick it up, put MOMENTS in its place.
You think back. What was the last love poem you read? For now, it’s gone from your mind.
You open the book.
You turn to the table of contents.
Yes, that was it. Stop Wait Go.
You turn to it.
A bit hot and heavy.
You pause.
And then . . .
It’s so unlike what you’ve been living.
You turn to the table of contents again.
You remember there was one poem you skipped.
Confusion.
Yes, that was it.
You’ve never liked confusion.
Still, now you decide to turn to that poem.
To be continued . . .
A STORY. ALL THE CHAPTERS ... UP TO NOW
https://elsaiselsa.substack.com/p/a-story-table-of-contents-up-to-now
Posted March 2, 2025