Noun that I've been watching (90)

cigarette.

I saw a woman just outside the building
where I buy organics beets for weekly soup.

she released a whistle of fog colored smoke
I liked. I still like its scent, despite

the roster of prohibitions. sheepish yes
bequeathed to my party favored life before

this onset of blessed purity
for which I prayed.

is it armistice day? I feel as though
the woman with the cigarette shares

the celebration and the disappointment
coming through my pores.

we have not spoken, I just watch
what she is doing, as if

present tense were simple
and accessible and full of unvetted bravery.

Noun that I've been watching (89)

cradle.

anyone can be a chaperone.
tonight, the broadcast
questioning the bell curve
will not be shown.

in its place, vespers
will shadow the child
beneath accoutrements
holding still, while

impositions of desire
remain irrelevant
if allowed.
as will the separation
between the living
and the innocents.