Poem: Seasonal Situation

Seasonal Situation

How much attention do fleas have?
Because I have that.
Smaller than I can put into words
I’d say microscopic but
That might be too big
It started with,
I don’t know what it started with 
But it’s shrunk down to this
Have I read a book?
I have not, fleas don't read books
Fleas scroll through Instagram reels
And decide they want to roller skate
Because, look at all these beautiful skaters
Until a surfer rides by, all casual and cool
On the lip of a wave curling perfectly
And the flea suddenly needs a surfboard
And for that matter a wave 
Every single summer I am going
To get more done and every single summer
Instead, the flea takes over 
And hangs ten. 

—Susan Thomsen, draft 2023

*****

The Poetry Friday roundup for September 8th is at Amy Ludwig VanDerwater's blog, The Poem Farm.

Photo by ST. Seagull mural by Javier Eastman, Norwalk, CT.

Comments

[Irene Latham]

Ha! I can so relate to the flea in your poem... and I smiled so big when I got to the "hang ten." Thank you! And that mural is gorgeous!

[Susan]

Irene, thanks so much! I really like that mural, too; it's one of my favorites locally.

[Tracey Kiff-Judson]

Susan, this is great, tee hee! Every year, I find that my flea spends longer and longer with me!

[Susan T.]

Thanks, Tracey! The flea totally interfered with my plan for the Sealey Challenge this year in which you read a book of poetry a day in August. Out of 31 days, well, never mind... :)

[Linda Baie]

I love that murals are so many places in people's lives, and yours is grand, Susan. Your poem brings up the matter of something buzzing around that brings temptation in a beautifully creative way, Susan. I love the idea of annoying brings a reward! Wonderful!

[Susan T.]

Thank you, Linda. With Labor Day over, perhaps my concentration in on the mend.

[Micheelle Kogan]

Wow that seagull looks like it's taking right off the wall, love it along with your poem which is also flying, or should I say, skating or surfing-wonderful imagery thanks for all the rides here Susan!

[Jane @ Raincity Librarian]

I used to say I work so well with small kids because we have about the same attention span. ;) But who can blame us, with so much to see and do in this busy buzzy world!

[Susan T.]

Isn't that seagull fab, Michelle? It's one of my favorite murals locally. Thanks for the kind words!

Jane, ha! Much to do and see, indeed. Thanks for stopping by.

[Mary Lee]

This poem is snort-worthy! So conversational and relatable. At least there's the hang ten, if nothing else!

[Denise Krebs]

Susan, haha! I'm quite flea-like at times. I love love the journey your flea-ness took throughout the poem. So funny!
"It started with,
I don’t know what it started with"

Thanks for sharing, and for the photo of this beautiful bird in flight.

[Susan]

Hahaha, Mary Lee! Thank you for the "snort-worthy." Yes! Next week more structure in my week starts to fall into place, so I'll get more done. I hope.

Denise, when I wasn't watching skating reels, I was meticulously compiling a new playlist. The amount of time I wasted! Oy. I don't even want to think about it. But thank you!

[PATRICIA J FRANZ]

BE THE FLEA!
:)

[Molly Hogan]

Ha! What a great poem! Like Mary Lee noted, the conversational tone is spot on. I love how it flowed (hopped?) along in flea-like fashion and the ending is just perfect!

[Susan T.]

Patricia, yasssss, hang ten!

Molly, "hopped" is a good way of describing it! haha. Those dang Instagram reels make skating and surfing look so easy.

[Rose Cappelli]

Great poem! Thanks for bringing a smile. I have lots of fleas who show up periodically. Sometimes you just have to go with it.

[Carol Varsalona]

Susan, the dove flying over and the flea flitting around. The yin and yang of life. Finding beauty and being distracted are relatable to me. Your poem rambles so beautifully and provides snort-worthy humor. Thanks for providing a poem that brings a smile.

[Karen Edmisten]

Oh, I can relate to this flea. :) Well done, you.
(Wait, what were we talking about?)

And what a gorgeous mural!

[Marcie Flinchum Atkins]

I think we can all relate to the flea at some point!

[Susan T.]

Rose, Carol, Karen, and Marcie, thank you so much for reading. Rose is right about the flea; you really do have to just go with it. :)

[janice scully]

I was going to get more done this summer, but in retrospect, we do perhaps more than we think. Sometimes we just need a break. I love how you've used the flea as a metaphor for your summer self.

[Susan T.]

Janice, thanks for stopping by. For some reason, after I wrote about the flea, I kept thinking of that old Herb Alpert song "The Spanish Flea." I did spend some time in Spain this summer. :)