Three Poems by Richard LeDue

 Another 6:40 AM Morning

Alarm clock nagging you

awake, dreams forgotten

while swatting at the snooze button

in the dark (sunrise an hour

away this time of year),

and last night, the minutes

tiptoed towards falling asleep

on the couch, TV glowing

against eyes that closed without trying.

Tomorrow, 

sunlight will be a couple of minutes

later, but you won't notice

(too busy blaming yourself

for the rising electric bill).

A Cold Day

A poem is sometimes liquid,

flowing like a waterfall on a summer day

or tears next to a hospital bed,

while other times, the words

freeze, become buried in snow,

shovel left out on the step

so the door won't even open,

have to climb out a window,

neighbours calling the police

to report you as an attempted suicide,

only to land in the waist high snow

face first,

and slowly crawl towards

where you need to be.

Love Story

Reading a book in bed,

I can feel sleep seducing me

behind my eyes,

and soon they will be closed

like a window and curtains

just before lovers undress,

loneliness left

to play fetch with the dogs

who were forgotten by their owners

for some reason they'll blame on night-

my dreams keeping my company

until morning.

__

Richard LeDue was born in Sydney, Nova Scotia, Canada, but currently lives in Norway House, Manitoba with his wife and son. His poems have appeared in various publications throughout 2019, and more work is forthcoming throughout 2020. His chapbook, The Loneliest Age was released in October 2020 from Kelsay Books.