MPNforum Magazine

Take a Break

by Arnie McConnell

He realized he liked washing dishes,

standing at the sink,
smelling the suds,
feeling the warmth
of water on his forearms.

They had weakened, the arms,
more than a little in recent years.
But, those noodly things
had just worked out in the yard,
for many hours, only that day.

Less purpling in the fingertips,
he thought, as he considered
his work hands,
feeling the plates.

He remembered how shrill those
arm nerves had been.
What had caused it?
A pinched nerve in his neck?
PV?

All he knew that evening was:
he felt better. Yes, better.
(It’s no shame to feel better.
No one will dock points.)

His little-boy nephew, Matt,once told him,
when asked about
an uncharacteristic silence over dessert,
“I’m thinkin’ about my yife.”

Matt’s now forty.

I’m thinkin’ about my yife, too, Matt.

According to a recent book (Mukherjee)
Cancer is still a tough nut.
And, a guy in the know says
that I have leukemia.

Yet, I’m feeling better, taking a drug
that sounds like a character from Crete,
with a little antifreeze added.

O, god of the back lawn,
praise this hero.
Allow his mind to wander.
Turn down his radar.
Support him in his quest
for elegant light.

The dishes are done.
I’m tired.
Good-night.

Take me back to the Contents