The Process
Shaun Ingalls
First one up, always.
Find a pair of clean shorts and a t-shirt –
nobody to impress during quarantine.
Start the pot of Folgers – gotta prime the pump.
It’s an eight-cup day.
Delete emails while the coffee brews.
How much of one’s life is spent pressing miniature trash cans?
Okay, okay, okay, just a minute!
Fill a travel cup and take the dog on walk #1 –
lots of dog-walking during quarantine.
Toast a bagel. Not really hungry, but I do it anyway –
lots of unnecessary eating during quarantine.
Sit down, alone, at the dining room table slash home office slash second
grade classroom –
no large groups dining during quarantine.
Listen to NPR and feel the frustration level gradually rise.
Click the X on that window and open a new document.
The calming drone of the air conditioner signals that it’s time to write –
lots of time to write during quarantine.