On Thursday mornings, a group of us gather together to visit over hot beverages, and then we make a list of words and write poems from them. I’ve only been coming to this group for a couple of years, but it’s been a group for a couple of decades. Sometimes, for me, the poem comes because two words happen to be next to each other in the list. For this poem, that juxtaposition was the words “luck” and “basil.”
Today I need luck
but I’ll settle for basil
fresh basil from the garden
(not my garden–I don’t have a garden)
but your garden will do. Do
you have basil?
I require copious amounts for pesto.
Olive oil is abundant, as is garlic, Parmesan,
there are nuts enough
but as luck would have it, no basil.
So, lucky you, you
get to help me get lucky.
If you lack basil, do you have some other savory herb?
Cilantro? Parsley? Any fragrant green bush will do. Do
me a favor–
look in your garden, push the squash aside
look for luck
while the full moon lasts. Later
I’ll help you replant.
