Poem-a-day catchup

[greenstorm]

#56

It starts like magic
Not just the magic of regular beginnings
But with a small child in the kitchen
Learning to read from a book of spells

Spells of abundance,
Creativity,
Satisfaction:
The alchemy of transforming marked-down
Leftovers
Into something good for the spirit
As well as the body.

Though the magic serves well
It’s not always easy,
Standing in front of the fridge
Spellbook in hand
Staring blankly. Or,
Tired at the end of the day,
Eating half a loaf of store bread and some water.

In the middle there are such
Comfortable
Days. The before-coffee rhythm of
Scooping flour,
Measuring salt and baking powder in the palm,
Cutting butter in,
Pouring milk by eye.
The warming oven pings in the bite
Of morning air through open windows
And the cats rub perilously at ankles below.
The rhythms of this magic
Are a dance that can be done in sleep.

Sometimes it’s showy:
A duet in the kitchen now
And two families brought together in a spell for
Contentment
With all their needs met.

The beginning, the middle,
And though the end is not written
I know it will contain magic.