Outtakes
I’m shedding garments
like an ecdysiast, one by one—
every coat I haven’t worn,
every skirt that dusts the floor
or rides my upper thighs,
stodgy cuffed trousers,
hippie bell-bottoms,
blouses with flounces
or fringes, anything
older than my children—
items that could be useful,
but only in another life.
I won’t be outmantled
by closets full to overflowing:
high time to strip away
whatever idles out-of-sight,
out-of-mind, out-of-date.
Good riddance to years
of overspending—to any
residue of lingering guilt.
I will become an exemplar
of order, eschew cheap wire
hangers. As for my drawers—
the less said the better.
• • •
From Philosophy 101
3. Uncertainty
The trouble with uncertainty
is that it can get you
coming and going.
Heisenberg figured this out,
peering deeply into the heart
of (the) matter. To give the man
his due, he was right. How
many sleepless nights
do we spend under a cloud?
A push here, a shove
there—the consequences
too often redoubtable.
• • •
Linda M. Fischer has poems published or forthcoming in Potomac Review, Valparaiso Poetry Review, Josephine Quarterly, Iodine Poetry Journal, Ibbetson Street, Muddy River Poetry Review, Poetry Porch, Schuylkill Valley Journal, and elsewhere. Find more poetry and details about her chapbooks, Raccoon Afternoons and Glory, on her website: lindamfischer.com