The Coffee Vigilante

The Coffee Vigilante


1. candlelit

gleam of glass
fades into black
flickered light in windchimes
echoing, silent, from the blinds
swinging forward
swinging back
a night owl's vigil
knowledge seeking
stormwaiting
pencil-reaching, hesitating
ever restless
never sleeping
at the window,
watching, waiting


2. the insomniac

an alien resides inside this body
it stays up late drinking coffee
and writing poetry
sometimes restlessness overcomes it
and it leaves the apartment
and wanders around,
meandering through shadows
and pools of light
some cool, rainy sunday nights,
it leans against the balcony rail
and watches the weekend wayfarers
wend their ways through car lots
with arms full of laundry
and slowly exhales
breaths of cool, dark, dewy air
sometimes it stands and stares
at its glass reflection
as though trying to convince itself
a little alien is normal
unknown who named the word
or how it corresponds
to hyper-caffeinated consciousness
and an alien's insomnia


3. into the dark

I did not watch the candle die
one moment it shimmered,
flickering merrily
on the ghost of a wick
the flick of an instant
the bat of an eye
and there was only glass
reflecting longingly
the extinguished light
of an ebony wick
a wisp of smoke in the dark
into the night like a sigh


4. empty glass

a drop runs dry,
fleeing the black depth
of one empty vessel
for another

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I am often restless at night, a longtime insomniac - and I have a habit of compounding the problem by staying up and consuming excessive amounts of coffee.