The Friday Poem: Gray skies over Benicia

Gray skies over Benicia  by Lois Requist

The sky turned gray and stayed that way
Patches of fog hung over the marina 
Like children with no place to play

Grim thoughts ran off the television and into her mind
Through the kitchen and out the door
There’s no stopping them now! No relief could she find.

She drank herbal tea without caffeine
For reasons you already know
Dreamed of hot, steamy espresso, thick and black
It’s not easy to be good
For reasons you already know.

Lights from the refinery glistened across the straits 
Diffuse and impressionistic in the moist air
Like Monet, Manet, or one of millions of Kincaids 

While sky, earth, and water blended into grayness
She dreamed of sunlight, roses, another time, another place
For reasons you already know.

This muted color doesn’t require as much of her
She’s free to read a book all day by the fire
Or stare into sea and sky, remembering blue
At liberty to slide off shoes and into slippers

Another day, she’ll be responsible and productive
Try a new recipe, make a new plan
For reasons you already know.

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If there’s something in this article you think should be corrected, or if something else is amiss, call editor JB Davis at 707-628-0051 or email him at benicia@patch.com