A Mrs. Gillis called about your order.
The crown moldings got a little dustier.
A crocus peeked early.
A bomb killed twelve in Egypt.
That odd noise in the plumbing went away.
The oceans rose a micromillimeter.
A million new stars appeared
many skies distant.
The analogue clocks didn’t make their usual circle
but went off on wonderful new paths.
A baby, we think undocumented,
was placed on your doorstep.
Nothing else, really.
Martin Marcus is a published humorist with two books of ethnic humor, one an international best seller. His essays, memoirs and verse have appeared in national magazines. His poetry and fiction have been published in literary journals, and of his collection, File Under Melancholy, Pulitzer prize poet Maxine Kumin wrote: “Lucky for us that Martin Marcus has returned to his first love, poetry. There’s not a false note in this bravura performance.”
Copyright 2018, Martin Marcus