Jell-O

Jell-O

 

In this pandemic, time becomes runny Jell-O.

of indistinct color, of no true flavor. Cool, not

chilled, a gruel with loose cohesion; watery aspic-

goop easily poured into drains, basins, mouths,

molds. Forming a clump (can anything we call a

“clump” be welcomed?), oozing, leaving a stain.  

 

But this is not entirely accurate,

 

In this slurry-time rest small bits, tiny islands of

contentedness, if not joy. Ukulele lessons from Oahu,

relearning rummy, building kits or puzzles, reconnecting

with the high school crowd on Facebook, tie-dying

our masks as birds-of-paradise plumage.

 

Isolation, disruption bring reasons

to add ice cubes to our bowls of time.

 

Michael A. Griffith

 

Michael A. Griffith teaches at Raritan Valley and Mercer County Community Colleges in central NJ. He is the author of three chapbooks of poetry, Bloodline; Exposed; and New Paths to Eden. Two of these, Bloodline and Exposed, are available in eBook format from Soma Publishing. Mike facilitates a monthly poetry workshop for the Princeton Public Library and is a board member of the Delaware Valley Poets/US 1 Poets. Recent work appears in Ariel Chart, Haiku Journal, Kelsey Review, North of Oxford, Page & Spine, and the anthology book Floored

Check out this books on https://www.somapublishing.com

links available for ebook and print.