MORNING PASTRIES

We all know this

from time travel movies 

like Back to the Future...
that if we go back in time

our very presence
will change the future. 

In my dream last night 

there was something

I wanted to go back
and tweak. I realized 

that all I really needed 

to do to make 

the change happen 

was to choose a different 

morning pastry, one with 

a cinnamon swirl instead 

of one with almonds 

on top. I wish life were 

this simple. Maybe it is. 

Maybe using words 

like "they did this 

for me" instead of 

"they did this to me" 

is the difference 

between a cinnamon swirl

and shaved almonds.

 

POPHAM BEACH, MAINE 

In tidal waters 

no deeper

than an inch,

the tiniest

of stars

glide across

a cosmos

of sand. Bubbles are

the many mirrored lens

that shape-shift

the sun into these

swimming, winking

wonders. The miraculous

is all around us

all the time. A simple

walk on the beach

will show us this

if we remember  

to meander

with eyes wide open.