Narrow Alley in Morning—From One End to the Other by Tobi Cogswell

Tattered seam of sky

ripped by curls of iron

and quiet chaos—

an opaque surface

hangs suspended, while

the morning blush of sun

patterns jigsaw pieces on

worn stone and smooth walls—

pungent color softened by shadow.

Balconies dry clothes,

somnolent flags of people’s lives.

Their colors fly, like ticker-tape,

floating pinks and reds, ready

to greet the day. Out of sight,

roused by the hush of lost dreams

and the smell of coffee, one

mangy neighborhood rooftop cat picks

a careful path through chimney smoke.

Tobi Cogswell is a four-time Pushcart nominee and a Best of the Net nominee.  Her sixth and latest chapbook is “Lapses & Absences”, (Blue Horse Press).  Her seventh chapbook, “The Coincidence of Castles”, is forthcoming from Glass Lyre Press. She is the co-editor of San Pedro River Review (www.sprreview.com).

The Meeting by Tobi Cogswell

Buy me a ticket on the morning ferry,
meet me at the quay. I have just a small bag—
don’t be disappointed. We don’t even know
if we can dance this dance.

Stop at the shop, buy apples, brown bread,
good butter, better coffee. I know you
already have the wine, brought over
from your earlier trip to Barcelona.

I will be wearing a blouse—
the lightest pink of your imagination.
My hair will be damp, face flushed
from anticipation and the crested sea.

Hold me as if I were your lifesaver.
The strength of your arms will write whether
I leave on the next tide, whether the ghosts
of morning breezes ensure we survive.

Tobi Cogswell is a four-time Pushcart nominee and a Best of the Net nominee.  Her sixth and latest chapbook is “Lapses & Absences”, (Blue Horse Press).  Her seventh chapbook, “The Coincidence of Castles”, is forthcoming from Glass Lyre Press. She is the co-editor of San Pedro River Review (www.sprreview.com).