The Smoking Barrel

Life is fit for opportunity:
Take the seat on your own,
Order the cappuccino,
Order the chicken tenders,
Smile and make yourself presentable
Even though you didn't have a shower this morning.
"Do you take sugar?"
I looked at the bottle of water,
The glass just poured. "Yes."
She brought me sugar.
Love the moment,
Hate the feelings,
Walk off rejection.
Your hair looks good to someone,
No matter how messy it fell.
Friends may come,
Friends may go;
Friends are not the ones who leave you alone,
Freeze you out,
Forget how much a phone call means,
How easy a phone call is to make,
Place your heart on a stake.
They will fade,
Their influence diminish;
You will start anew,
A bird with greater wingspan.
Order another coffee,
Stay up late,
Make no apologies for the past you had to live through
   - that is yours and yours alone.
Some will never know,
Some won't want to know,
Some will understand,
Some play the advantage of their hand.
Fly, roll, run, walk,
This has all been said before.
Words, how they matter not,
For
The intent is to release the soul
From its prison of thoughts.

• 09/09/17, Motueka

Collected in The Tasman Jouney, ©2019, W.F. Stubbs