Thursday, May 19, 2016

Pink Clouds Over Kmart


Pink Clouds Over Kmart

Peaceful pink clouds float along
in the bright blue sky over Kmart.
Inside, frazzled shoppers toss clothes 
 from clearance racks into a cart.

Blue collar workers, struggling to make ends meet,
clutch their coupons and look for a great buy.
When they came in, they didn't even notice 
those wispy, pink clouds drifting above the store 
in that blue, blue sky.

Their faces are pinched and distracted.
As they leave, they are lost in thought.
Already they are worrying
about the money they just spent
on all the things that they bought.

They're searching for happiness 
through retail therapy, 
but they have yet to realize
that true joy isn't found in a shopping cart.
If only they knew, they might find delight
in the soft pink clouds drifting by 
in the blue, blue skies over Kmart.

*   *   *   *   *

I snapped the photo above with the camera in my phone while riding by in the car. I thought the pink clouds were pretty, and I liked the way they stood out against the blue of the sky. I took the shot below just a few seconds later. I was quite surprised to see how differently the second shot came out in comparison to the first. In reality, the sky was blue not pink, but this is how the picture came out. I did not, to my knowledge, change any settings on the phone to make the photo look this way. I also did not edit it to make it look this way. I don't know why this photo turned out like this, but I liked it, so I decided to share it with you. To me it almost has an eerie retro or lost-in-time kind of feel to it.  Maybe the imaginary shoppers in my poem above would have noticed the sky if it had been pink!





Friday, May 6, 2016

Time Out

Time Out

It’s been a long day.
Junior has broken every rule.
Mommy has put him in time out.
He’s sitting in the corner on a stool.
She steps back to survey the mess. 
Crayon marks are on the wall 
in red, green, and blue.
Toys are thrown 
in every corner of the room.
Mommy whimpers a little. 
She needs a time out too.

Happy Mother's Day, everyone!