watercolor and sawdust
 
it's happening again
dark seasons give way to light
chickadees fight over frozen suet
and I'm dreaming into warm afternoons
burying my derelict duties
in watercolor and sawdust
 
I've given up the muse
she has stood me up once too many
so I've rented videos of passion
played sweetly in slow motion evenings
scaring the cat with my sudden dance
 
no more TV news
wetting my dry eyes
with the pain of a planet
I'm searching the internet
for alternative music, soulful paintings
and the deep hidden life 
of shy poets
 
for each day is mine
unwrapped as I see fit
and packaged with the overdue expectation
of a tired but waking pilgrim
 
                                            © Chuck Beals   February 10, 2000