Overtime

It looks like we are going into overtime, folks.

During regulation, the game was played without fear or
hesitation. Both teams fought, blocked, ran, stole, and shot
lights out. Fans almost had to get their lighters out.
Empty the gas tank and tie those shoes tight. One ship
will sink. One team will win, right? One team will take
flight straight to Disneyland, and the other will go home
with a fine-tooth comb: looking for what went wrong.
After all four quarters, overtime is a tall order. After long,
the game was stopped after one coach threw a chair.
The other coach pulled the ref’s hair. 50-50 with 50 seconds
left in overtime lit on the sign. The game was delayed,
and no fans stayed. Anyway, both teams left the building
before overtime was finished. No one won, but it is fine;
only some of us are lucky enough to live and see overtime.


Memory Lane

Today, the car is in cruise control.
I take it slow and go with the flow.
Today, I take a ride down Memory
Lane. I revisit past pain and travel
through time frames: different days.
I unravel. I tear up gravel to navigate
an unknown fate. I carry weight;
I talk to my shadows: old versions
of myself. Sometimes, I ask them
for help – words of advice. Miles
into Memory Lane, I face pain
and embrace joy all the same.
I see old friends of mine the way
they were before I last saw them.
I notice houses I used to live in;
I recognize yards I used to play in.
I begin to see places I have been.
Today, I met with Father Time
and rode down Memory Lane
before any new memories came.