Today's poem is by Sheila E. Murphy

Something about your Drinking
       

buckets of water
disturbs me. I would rather
not remember we are mammals.
Equally, I would prefer not
To hear talk of a P trap
From the plumber.
The word embarrasses me.

I like it at my desk
where things are quiet
and arranged where I can locate
them alongside branching concepts.
I like to write them down.
I like to read exactly what
another person thinks.
I would prefer not to observe

a spate of guzzling liquid
or to listen to a plumber
call to mind the fact of
various realities that need
fixing or attention.
My attention is expensive,
and I like to spend it

on ideas. Perhaps just something
that goes well with air, the stars,
whatever may transcend
the ceiling.
I like to think
beyond the body's scars
toward tissues of ideas.

Copyright © 2025 Sheila E. Murphy All rights reserved
from Permission to Relax
BlazeVOX [books]
Reprinted by Verse Daily® with permission