for Paul
A new routine after years
of staying home, sleeping late,
proving that if all you have to do
in a day is a single load of laundry,
it will take all day.
With this Titanic economy
now it’s leap to bugle-call attention
when the alarm sergeants, shower
dress, raceway to work,

but first
like a child peering under her pillow
for the tooth fairy prize, I check the fridge
to see if the Sandwich Fairy came
while I was dreaming of the weekend,

sleep fast, there’s not much time
and most mornings, the plastic baggie prize
waits like dawn on Christmas morn.

Could be he came while exhaustion took me
on the couch mid-show, two movie reels –
looking back at day past and plotting
the day ahead – play in my too-busy mind,
or when I woke to stagger upstairs to answer/
send an email/two until my lids lock down.
He’s an invisible fairy when I’m marathoning
stairs/laundry/submission deadlines,

so who knows when his surreptitious kitchen
magic with roast beef, tuna, pb&j take place
and mornings when the fridge shelf is bare,
I humble to a muffin, piece of fruit,
whatever will do. I smile –
never expecting, always accepting
love between two slices of wonder.

J R (Judy) TUREK, Superintendent of Poetry for the LI Fair, 2020 Hometown Hero, 2019 LI Poet of the Year, Bards Laureate 2013-2015, editor, mentor, workshop leader, and author of seven poetry books, the most recent DogSpeak is supporting North Shore Animal League, the world’s largest no-kill shelter. ‘The Purple Poet’ has written a poem a day for 19 years; she lives on Long Island with her soul-mate husband, Paul, her dogs, and her extraordinarily extensive shoe collection.