Day 131: Poetry and Pho

Beef broth with veggies, tofu, shrimp and rice noodels at Pho Dalat, Portland, Oregon

Taking a break at one of my favorite Pho restaurants. This one is in the Hawthorne neighborhood, where I am teaching today.  I stopped briefly at the library and picked up a book of poems: "Good Poems" selected by Garrison Keillor.

I opened the book to this one:

“At least

I want to get up early one more morning,
before sunrise. Before the birds, even.
I want to throw cold water on my face
and be at my work table
when the sky lightens and smoke
begins to rise from the chimneys
of the other houses.
I want to see the waves break
on this rocky beach, not just hear them
break as I did in my sleep.
I want to see again the ships
that pass through the Strait from every
seafaring country in the world -
old, dirty freighters just barely moving along,
and the swift new cargo vessels
painted every color under the sun
that cut the water as they pass.
I want to keep an eye out for them.
And for the little boat that plies
the water between the ships
and the pilot station near the lighthouse.
I want to see them take a man off the ship
and put another one up on board.
I want to spend the day watching this happen
and reach my own conclusions.
I hate to seem greedy - I have so much
to be thankful for already.
But I want to get up early one more morning, at least.
And go to my place with some coffee and wait.
Just wait, to see what's going to happen.”

― Raymond Carver

 

It must be fate.  I know what would really get me on track would be to wake up early. Tomorrow! :)

 

Happy Thursday! :)