Between

If our lives were lived in a straight line
like holding ends of a jump rope–
one turner madness, the other magic,
we would learn to rise in rhythm
with each arc of the rope and all that happens
in a moment of becoming airborne.

Between the landing and next jump
are the daily interactions that prove us human:

The nod of passing hikers scaling an uphill trail.
The placing of coins in a palm by the shopkeeper
after asking how your elderly mother is doing.
A screen door held open or gently shut
after shared cups of chamomile tea on a rainy day.
The manicurist who shapes your nails into a spring color palette.
A pitanga bush overhanging the bridge
never failing to drop its red dappled berries into the lap of April.

Each handshake, hug, and embrace
is a life in the telling, stories that will end
in a skip, jump, and final landing
between madness and magic.

*

Laurie Kuntz loves when her work finds a home in ONE ART. Other places her poetry has appeared are: Sparks of Calliope, Sheila Na Gig, Gyroscope Review, Anti-Heroin Chic, 3rd Wednesday, Ibbetson Street and others. After four previous nominations, she won a Pushcart Prize in 2024.