Drifts

Dirty looks from a superior,
Double shotgun barrels,

Tell you you’ve failed.
It is not worth noting

To this individual
The gross unimportance

Of the task
Under scrutiny here.

So you sit quietly
And let him kill you

Slowly
With his bloodshot eyes.

Your mind wanders
To the woman you love

In the next office.
She is unhappily married

To a callous,
Dreamless man.

You watch her walk
To her husband’s car

And call, “Goodnight,"
Each night,

As if you’ll
Never see her again.

But tonight the snow has fallen
And the moon shines

Like a wayward wedding ring.
You head for your car

And lose yourself,
Wide-eyed,

Inside a sparkle
Of immaculate snow.