Wednesday, January 13, 2016

Sorting Things Out

Getting rid of things is all the rage these days
Minimalism, letting things go, downsizing
aka
Throwing things out.
“Does it spark joy?”
If not it’s gone!
Experts enlighten me
Let go of the past so you can be in the present
And future
Grow into who you were meant to be.

Okay but

Sorting out an old box the other day
I came across Chicago Cubs batting glove
Its visage jumped out at me
Like the face of an old friend
Coming around a corner.
I remembered putting it on when I was maybe fourteen
Feeling the cool vinyl against my skin
Clenching and loosening my fist
The glove taut against it.


Back then

The whole world was
Lee Smith bringing the high heat
Or Gary Mathews (“the Sarge”)
“It might be, it could be, it is! A home run.”
The boy who wore that glove is gone of course (mostly)
And I have to let him go (but not yet?)
I can't say joy was what I felt
And yet I can’t deny the wonder
Of coming face to face with him
So unexpectedly.

Is that so wrong?

4 comments:

  1. "Okay but" is exactly how I feel about downsizing, thank you for this!

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  2. Great stuff. I have at least 15 boxes of things in the basement I'm too scared to confront.

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  3. More poems please! No pressure. :)

    ReplyDelete