Love Beads and a Fog Horn

by Maryann Hurtt


in that once upon a time
bellbottoms and no bra delight
sixties
a faraway man sent letters
make love, not war
words that heated
her nights alone
in her first on her own
upstairs flat

two blocks east
Lake Michigan blew cold
the fog horn sounding wisdom
make your life count
wake up
get out of bed
dress then catch the # 5 bus
punch in
wash bottoms
slide old bodies side to side
no bedsores allowed

the man from faraway cities returned
placed love beads around her neck
till one day they broke
and shattered

they grew into seeds
planted in rich dirt
hoping to be daisies
or sunflowers
blooming all over again

but quite possibly even taller


* * * * *

Now retired after working thirty years as a hospice RN, Maryann Hurtt listened to a thousand stories of resiliency, pain, joy, and sorrow. Her poetry reflects many of the stories. Verse-Virtual, Gyroscope Review, Moss Piglet, and Anti-Heroin Chic recently published her work. Once Upon a Tar Creek Mining for Voices (Turning Plow Press) came out 2021. Tar Creek has been called “the worst environmental disaster no one has heard of.” Hurtt is determined its legacy is remembered and heeded.