A life is a thing to be comfortable in

happy, not worried
by some phantom of future;
like sitting on a sofa
with some tea
and a dog. a life is a thing
to be comfortable in,
and we’re comfortable here
in this house
with its windows. it’s not
a surrender, to live
just like this. to know
what you have
and to have it.
turning over in bed
beside someone
you love. cracking
their back for them.
bringing them coffee.

Some other more beautiful bird

friday – taking sips
from the first cup
of coffee.
I’ve been working
from home
for a year now
and the year
has been ever
extending.

often at my desk
in time for the sunrise, I rise
and go with it –
go to the garden,
bringing my hot
cup of coffee. red

crests the buildings
and cuts through pollution
and the steam
from the top
of my cup.

the expanded fan
of some flourishing
peacock
or some other
more beautiful
bird.

The college poetry tutorials

I remember:
like children
scalpeling butcher-
bought sheep hearts
in silence
toward the back
of a badly-heated
science class.

DS Maolalai has been nominated eight times for Best of the Net and five times for the Pushcart Prize. His poetry has been released in two collections, "Love is Breaking Plates in the Garden" (Encircle Press, 2016) and "Sad Havoc Among the Birds" (Turas Press, 2019). He has asked that any donations be sent to MASI Ireland.