CONSOLATION

by Richard Schnap

It helps to know you’re not alone,
That others share the burden of life’s lessenings,
A divorced mother running a pizza shop
Wanting many things as an oven breaks down,
An elderly cashier at a corner supermarket
Glad for the fact that he woke up that day,
Even the sidewalks splintering over time,
The trees that die leaving forsaken nests.

Remember this. For you are not the only one
Who long ago gave up on birthday candles
And Thanksgiving wishbones, who lost
At love while the clock’s ticks grew louder.
The world is a waiting room filled to capacity,
In prisons and penthouses, taverns and tabernacles,
And you only need to look out your window
To see someone passing with their head bowed low.