March 8, 2016

the guest
in memory of Ted Bogardus

She arrived like a windstorm, and the chaos you'd imagined you'd organize
before she descended remained tangled and lawless when the plane arrived early
and you scurried, instead, to the airport to pick her up. In certain ways,
you were relieved the air currents had brought her sooner - left to your own
devices, you know you'd worry over the piles, waste time in a state of overwhelm and
certain inertia. Sometimes, we need the urgency of a clock running down to
muscle us out of the usual delays. We need someone to tell us to get in the car and drive.
When you hustled out the door, you weren't thinking of the dust you hadn't swept away
but rather, how welcome this visit was on a day like this, and how sweet the reunion would be,
and how you would smile at each other the whole ride home.