Circle Line
Thought I might be enlightened
on the tube from Paddington
to Kings Cross. Taking in all
faces, sounds, things, no
judgments; this feeling almost
familiar now, a month in.
Mind enchanted left and right.
Then recalling the woman
who, sitting beside me from
Bristol earlier today,
smiled as she left, causing
me to gasp, almost, at the
delicacy of her mouth,
thought not. But I could be right.
The Key to Everything
Five garden-variety letters
with two repeating, to
create a word, a
space in time,
a present of
the here.
C
O
M
M
A
The
comma
is the key
to everything
in this lifetime.
Pause. Breathe in.
Breathe out. Use space.
The gap. Mind the comma.
Tony Press lives near San Francisco and tries to pay attention. Even when drinking hot chocolate in Oaxaca, Mexico, or in Bristol, England. Even then. If you look for them, you can find many of his stories and not as many of his poems. Recent poems appear in The Lake; Misty Mountain; Right Hand Pointing; and One Sentence Poems.
Loved your thoughts on the comma which, to me, promises a between a transfer from author to reader. It’s a transfer station, if you will, where you may breathe and not Mind the Gap:-) Very thought-provoking, both poems. Thank you, Tony!
my mind is enchanted left and right as well.
Marvelous! (Mr. Press, I will never see a “Mind the Gap” sign in quite the same way again — thank you for these!)
Always love your work, Tony, so delightfully observed, so well-crafted. These two remind me of my own trips to England where I loved listening to the warnings, “mind the gap,” as you got off the tube trains.
This made me smile though only Renzo here to gasp…and he’s sleeping. So nice to see your writing!
Fantastic, agree with Laura on “Mind the Gap” very clever.
Two delightful, evocative and fun poems. Thanks much.
A lovely reminder to be receptive to life’s gifts! I’ll “mind the gap” today for sure! L.
Thanks for these! Great evocation of Tube encounters
Thanks, Tony, for continuing to bring a smile to my face. Helena
Tony, as always, you make a joy out of words and remind us to “pay attention.” Thank you for these lovely poems.
Thanks to each of you for your kind and thoughtful comments. It’s always a treat to see/hear/read responses!
Really nice to see an idea cross-over, from one world, to another. What better place, than in the ‘underground’. Thanks, Acarasiddhi !
Today I reread these and still found them gentle and lovely.
I’ve just peeked again, too, and I thank you.