"Variations on Morning, pt. 3 (from Ljubljana Notebook)" by Frank Karioris

Variations on Morning, pt. 3 (from Ljubljana Notebook)

The river runs, as it always does,
ignoring the hour and passage of time
to continue keeping its own tempo, steady.

Small street lights and parked cars
are the inhabitants of this moment,
an hour still before the bakery opens.

The bar next-door with coffee mugs
on the windowsill awaiting the early afternoon
shop keeper to open and take them back in.

Vehicles — taxis and buses — begin
the process to see themselves on the street,
reclaiming them from shadows and dust.

I arrive, at home, for bed is waiting
for me and shall not wait any longer.

Frank Karioris

Frank G. Karioris (he/they/him/them) is a writer and educator based in Pittsburgh, whose writing addresses issues of friendship, masculinity, and gender. Their work has appeared or is forthcoming in Pittsburgh Poetry Journal, Collective Unrest, Maudlin House, Sooth Swarm Journal, and Crêpe & Penn, amongst others. They are a regular contributor to Headline Poetry & Press. Twitter: @FrankGKarioris

Headshot: Dan Hamilton

Photo Credit: Staff