A paean of disarray more
jolly than the ordered tightly knit
simulacrum of a laugh
that belongs to someone else.

Patience thus whittled
to yield imagined result
of threads joined
no such instance in my head.

Threnody instead then taken
mildly in lieu of gently
anticipated flow reflecting
lovely weeds and caritas

Of an accidental nature
the way I locate
syllables to defray
the cost of living consciously.

Sheila E. Murphy
04 14 24