NaPoWriMo 2024 – Day 12 – anonymous friends

anonymous friends 

It was several summers ago when 
our paths crossed, her frail frame 
swimming in goodwill store high 
fashion, red lipstick bleeding 
into the lines around her thin lips, 
curly, gray ringlets tumbling out from 
under the rim of a crocheted blue cap,
an astute observer she was, I could tell
with twinkling eyes - so wise was she 
I sensed it, as I jogged by each day

Even though we never spoke 
as i rounded the corner of the street
the last leg of my three mile trek
she always smiled with a nod as if 
to say, “I see you”, and I would 
smile and nod, “I see you too”
it seemed the polite thing to do
I wonder if she sees me still…
to see and to be seen is no small 
thing as I have come to know
 
I never realized how significant these
intentional, chance meetings were
until the week she wasn’t there
waiting for the city bus in her usual 
spot. It was a week that turned into 
weeks…then a month…two months…
then three, she was gone, my great 
fear confirmed when a real estate 
agent staked a “for sale” sign in 
the middle of her unkempt, overgrown lawn

I lost interest in running soon after, 
that street corner became a bittersweet 
reminder of the connection we shared
I wish we had spoken a word or two…
how remarkable it was that she touched
my soul so deeply, however briefly, 
moments that fill me with melancholy
a tinge of regret, a missed opportunity 
we might have been friends, perhaps we were
though I never even knew her name

~kat

Slightly on topic or off topic…A tale but not exactly tall. 😊

NaPoWriMo 2024 ~ Day 12 Challenge: write a poem that plays with the idea of a “tall tale.” American tall tales feature larger-than-life characters like Paul Bunyan (who is literally larger than life), Bulltop Stormalong (also gigantic), and Pecos Bill (apparently normal-sized, but he doesn’t let it slow him down). If you’d like to see a modern poetic take on the tall tale, try Jennifer L. Knox’s hilarious poem, “Burt Reynolds FAQ.” Your poem can revolve around a mythical character, one you make up entirely, or add fantastical elements into a real person’s biography.