Meteor part 2 ... then...when i finish hyperventilating ...i look again, and it is a stranger. a look-alike. somebody else's ex. mantra on seeing the homeless: that's someone's baby; someone's mom/dad, someone. Not me, not mine, praise god. strapped to the driver's seat, locked in the car, i look away. wait for the stoplight to change so i can drive on, and keep my heart safe.

Sometimes you think you're going along just fine; then a meteor hits you. A ball of flaming rock from outer space. Know what i mean? End of a weekday, driving home, humming along with the song in my head (Louis Armstrong, "what a wonderful world"...ta da dum, ta da dee...) autumn, cold wind in the city, a little rain. (... ta da dee dee de dee...) waiting at a stop light, look left-- (...and i think to myself, ta da dum ...) look right-- man sleeping on bench at bus stop-- (...yes, we're used to that, ta da dee...,) look again... his coat pulled up like a blanket-- i can see his face it is my ex.