Sitting at a table
Our group of eight
A crowded restaurant
An awareness
Of my not talking
Not listening
Gazing out the window
Feeling detached
Indifferent
An unknown
Unarticulated
Longing
For what?
That missing something
©2017 Thomas W. Cummins
—-∞∞—-
Thundering, blowing rain
A squall
Wind-whipped leaves
Vegetables in the prisoners’ garden
Planted in the housing unit yard
By the fence
While a desolate place
Nurturing rain
Growth
Symbols of life’s hope
Grace overcoming bleakness
Pushing aside despair
Sheltered under an overhang
I watch and wait
Far from the chapel
Where men also wait
Four locked gates away
I watch and wait
© 2017 Thomas W. Cummins
Is it just sitting there waiting?
The future, that is.
Or is it there at all?
Yet, whatever it is, it looms
Often dreaded,
Occasionally filled with hope.
Our present steps into that future.
Or, perhaps, the future comes toward us
As our past is pulled away.
Pulled away with its regrets and joys.
Pulled away with its dreams
Fulfilled or deferred.
Aren’t we left, really, with only today?
Today, the present, belongs to both
Past and future.
Who I am is a remnant of my own past.
My present is experienced by no other
My future waits for me alone.
©2017 Thomas W. Cummins
Slightly darker
On the pale carpet of the bunkhouse
My socks are located
In the dim light
I get dressed
It’s that point
Neither night nor day
Muted even further
By towering trees
In the woods
An eastern horizon
Gives no hint of daybreak
Nor any hint of what the day may hold
What a seamless series of nows
May present
©2017 Thomas W. Cummins
If we look closely
Amidst dry, lifeless clutter
As our life seems, sometimes
Or often
Can be found
Breathtaking beauty
Hope
I wish, somehow, there was a way to put up sandbags against today’s flood of sadness
But through God’s grace, I know things will get better
Patience
Acceptance
Finding sustenance for my spiritual roots
To not get pulled down, dragged down, diminished by the careless behavior of others
My best friend is with me
Everything will be okay
We’ll get through this
Gentleness, kindness, understanding and forgiveness will prevail
Surrendering to the power of Wisdom
Perhaps letting go
In a dim light... 
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