Shelley of Oklahoma is our host today for the final day of the March Open Write, encouraging us to write poems to help us relax. You can read her full prompt here. I have one of those conferences today – the kind in a town with a gas station and a stop sign and maybe a hot dog in the gas station and nothing else, and I’m driving in with coworkers from an hour and seven minutes northeast, and I’m not overnighting so I have to leave early and get home late and I know the coffee’s gonna suck because it always does when they have those plastic canisters of powdered creamer and only pink-packet off-brand sweetener.
But I’m trying to relax.
Really.
Frumpy
Relax - no one cares
whether your pants match your shirt
or that they're wrinkled
Relax - no one cares
that the tops of your feet are
white as unbaked bread
Relax - no one sees
you picking at your fingers
of chipped nail polish
Relax - no one knows
your Odor Eaters are now
expired by three months
Relax - just because
you forgot to tweeze your lip
doesn't mean don't go
After all: you're the
driver....others are counting
on you to get there
Relax - your oil got
changed, your gas tank's full and your
car is vacuumed out
Relax - your riders
might find your car is cleaner
than theirs (not driven)
Relax - wait, is that
.....is that a seam coming out?
It's right on the butt
Nope, don't relax. Go
change pants. Nothing clean? That's what
long sweaters are for.
Heck, grab a blanket
and wrap up like a student
.....relax for a change!
Common Threads 
Oooh, stressful! I hope your day improved. I loved the rhythm and repetition.
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Frumpy is a great title that may explain your mood and way you look.(LOL!) I can feel the tension and humor you bring to this poem (even if you aren’t feeling humorous.)
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I love your poem and find it to be relatable, gentle, and humorous all at once. I’m not sure I’m going to write one of these today, but if I do, it will be late. Sometimes you just have to enjoy life and not worry about clothes, hair, etc. etc. I love a friend who is willing to do something at the spur of the moment. Those kind of days can be the most fun.
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Relax.
You can’t fix everything!
Enjoy the learning!
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Kim,
I’m totally onboard w/ all the mismatched relaxing in the first half of your poem, but that seam debacle makes relaxing hard. I’m sorry you’re having to endure sucky PD and bad coffee, but I hope the day brings an unexpected, happy surprise your way. I’m not sure relaxation is the response evoked from the prompt, and your poem reflects that. A few years ago at NCTE Cathy Blackler told me her husband’s attitude about dressing for dinner: “My money is as green as everyone else’s.” That says all we need to know about certain expectations. zit has helped me relax during travels.
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Wardrobe malfunctions! It’s the worst when you are out and about and can’t do much about it.
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Mama told me there’d be days like this! Oh my, Kim, that unraveling seam on my pants would absolutely keep me from relaxing. I hope your sweater was nice and long and your day was filled with small moments of beautiful.
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OMG! You had me laughing all the way through! I think we are sisters!
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Oh, Kim, I love the paragraph above your poem. It is not an easy situation to be in when the seam starts letting loose. I love your haiku narrative poems. Do you think you might make a haiku story collection someday?
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It’s funny you ask – I have been working on a collection of poems on the theme of awakenings, and many are haiku! Thanks for reading, Denise!
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