Breathing Poetry

Written by Emily Anderson
She lives in Columbus, Ohio, USA
Her blog: Rice in the Cupboard

Debris

(Debris, Ohio State University, January 2009 )

A half-eaten bagel and a pair
of black furry earmuffs curl
together on a bench outside
Denney Hall, like animals
trying to keep warm by sharing
the small heat of their bodies.

The sidewalk glows thinly,
slick and dangerous. A receipt
from the bookstore is frozen
against the curb, over a hundred
dollars for one book. Free
newspapers scuttle across
my path. Even they are rushed,
hurrying for shelter, missing
so much of this experience.

Posted with consent from the writer.