shot glass
title
"... brevity is the soul of wit ..."
- William Shakespeare


Bob Meszaros


 

A Teacher Mourns His Daughter

I sit at my desk before an empty classroom,
six straight rows before me, thirty desks in all.

The lights are out; the shades are drawn
and even; the filing cabinet's locked and bolted;
the basket's in the corner by the door.

Here, it is dark and quiet.
Here, every thing is in place.

At mid-night, one day clicks and shifts
into another, clicks and shifts into another.

I press my thighs and forearms against
the wooden desktop and curl into the night.