From the stars to the stars
The drive home took twice as many hours
The sink scrubbed shirt was still waxy
A long conversation took place
in which I simply guessed at the meaning.

José from Espana told me all about Raquel in books, how I shouldn’t smoke, about the animals he used to have where he lived,
how now he missed…something
I could read his expressions

From the stars to the stars
The chamomile tea was drunk
The chickpea pasta cooked
The basil chopped, goat cheese plopped
The cold oatmeal with raisins, slurped
and water

My phone asked for access 8 times
My cat needed out and in 14 times
There were 6 good long pets, 3 cuddles, 6 winces
My plants all got water, and the night seemed to roll in hotter than the day

From the stars to the stars
The sirens converged, A car alarm and cop car
and the over modulation of multiple car speakers at once
Shook my eardrums and stole the very space away from me

From the stars to the stars
I accomplished a bare minimum
I answered the phone, I did crosswords
I thought about expectations as a source of repression. How space can be given to the parts deemed undesirable, to see them to feel them

Maybe accomplishment is only achievable
between the mistakes
Peace is only there between all the noises
The exceptional only bookended by the ordinary
busyness only functional between vacancy