On my poet’s stove today
there are ten pots, each with
a word or a metaphor that stews
and awaits the next clear day.

Covid has robbed me
of my focus—the ability to string words
into a symphonic story, something
so easy for so many years.

I keep tossing ingredients
into the pot that calls me,
stir it, taste it, but then notice
something missing, as I loiter
to my office hoping to find words
along the way.

For solace, I hold my feather in one hand,
sage in another, but for the first time,
their energy repels me.

I want to pack my bag for some island,
but all flights are blocked or forbidden,
and my wallet shows only leather,
no green bills peeking out.

Outside my window,
the hummingbird flutters
near my bougainvillea,
and the lion fountain spits water from its mouth.

Nature is oblivious to pandemics,
and on my stove I continue
to simmer future stories.

©

Diana Raab, PhD is a memoirist, poet, essayist, blogger, and speaker. She presents workshops in writing for healing and transformation. She’s an award-winning author of 10 books, over 1000 articles and poems, and editor of two anthologies. Her latest books are Writing for Bliss: A Seven-Step Plan for Telling Your Story and Transforming Your Life and Writing for Bliss: A Companion Journal. Discover more at: https://dianaraab.com.