I fell in love today, again,
with life. So suffused was I in love’s glow
that all I met basked in my radiance
then thanked me with little kindnesses:
a wave from a wavy-haired child,
a couple of smiles from an intertwined couple,
six hellos from six cyclists all in a row.
Troublesome thoughts melted away like butter off hotcakes.
Petty annoyances were as evanescent as popped bubbles.
I became that warm gust that lifted spirits,
the spotlight that picked each person out
and announced, behold, this one is special.
And what was the fount of this blessing?
A nascent friendship,
a conversation over coffee,
the sharing of a poem.
Jody Baxter
Poet’s Comment:
”This poem, ‘I Fell in Love Today, Again,’ is based on a meeting over coffee to talk about a poem with someone I didn’t know well. When I sat down to describe that day and those feelings, this poem arrived almost fully formed on the paper. It is one of my first poems and it fooled me into thinking that writing a poem was always like that. Since then, more often than not, I struggle to find the right words to express ideas that are inchoate but so compelling. But what joy when those words finally come together and a poem emerges on the page.”