'TIL TUESDAY
a poem by Sharon Warden

Carefully,
with the precision
of an old hand at this,
he metes out a level cup
of birdseed to the feeder,
his daily portion for the flyers
that wait silently on the wires
in his yard;
throws a handful of peanuts
down the driveway
for the squirrels,
fat as pigs from the daily supplement
he provides them. 
 
Let's see --
enough handfuls of nuts
to last 'til Tuesday;
enough birdseed, too. 

Back inside, 
he scrutinizes the contents
of the refrigerator;
checks in the drawers,
on the shelves. 
Yes, there's enough
 
'til Tuesday --
eggs all in one basket now,
milk for his coffee,
bread to make toast,
hot dogs, ground meat,
two apples,
a little lettuce,
plenty of mayo,
enough 'til Tuesday. 

Satisfied,
he grabs his cup of coffee
and sits down 
to wrestle with the morning news. 
The smoke from his pipe
heads off for the ceiling. 
Plenty of tobacco in the canister
'til Tuesday. 

Sharon Warden