On The Other Side Of The World

Alison
Schiller

I take shelter in a bookstore
While the snow tucks us in
And promises a long night
Of slippery roads and fender benders.
I pick up a large hardcover
Traveling Destinations 2010
And sit down near a window
To enjoy the storm.
The book falls open on my lap
To a page with a picture
Of palm trees and white sand
And suddenly I smell the air
The way it is just after the rain
When the island dries itself
In the fierce tropical sun
And the children, bronzed and dirty,
Run through the crisp and shallow waves
Hollering in Maori
Like a band of wild warriors.
Down to town they run
To exchange their coins for ice cream
Because now that the rain has stopped
The tiny shops will open.

A car horn blares
And I’m in the bookstore
Watching a traffic jam 
In the powdery parking lot,
Everyone impatient and annoyed.
And I consider the difference
And the beauty of a place
Where shops close down for rainstorms
And people stand in doorways
Watching droplets fall.