Shelby Lynn Lanaro
Life Quickly Steeps
When we make a cup of tea,
we run off
to do something—anything—else
besides wait
as the timer ticks. How rarely
we watch as herbs flavor water.
Mint, rose hips, elderberry
marry steaming liquid,
while the water eases the release
of herbal essences, pouring
from their paper sachet; a dear
friend spilling its soul.
As the timer ticks to its final beep,
we make a choice:
1) we deem ourselves too impatient
to wait for the infusing to finish,
cut its time short, wring the bag,
and throw it away;
2) we allow the immersion
its full duration. Remain
in restraint for the timer to end; or
3) we forget the timer and our tea.
Let it over-steep in careless abandon.
Whether in haste or in reverence, we still
drink up life’s nectar
while neglect always leaves
a bitter taste on the tongue.
Shelby Lynn Lanaro received her MFA in 2017 from Southern Connecticut State University, where she now teaches Freshman English and Creative Writing. A New England native, Shelby has an acute attention to nature and capturing its splendor through words and photography. Shelby’s poems and photographs have appeared in Young Ravens Literary Review, The Wild Word, Verse of Silence, Better Than Starbucks, Gnashing Teeth, and others.
When we make a cup of tea,
we run off
to do something—anything—else
besides wait
as the timer ticks. How rarely
we watch as herbs flavor water.
Mint, rose hips, elderberry
marry steaming liquid,
while the water eases the release
of herbal essences, pouring
from their paper sachet; a dear
friend spilling its soul.
As the timer ticks to its final beep,
we make a choice:
1) we deem ourselves too impatient
to wait for the infusing to finish,
cut its time short, wring the bag,
and throw it away;
2) we allow the immersion
its full duration. Remain
in restraint for the timer to end; or
3) we forget the timer and our tea.
Let it over-steep in careless abandon.
Whether in haste or in reverence, we still
drink up life’s nectar
while neglect always leaves
a bitter taste on the tongue.
Shelby Lynn Lanaro received her MFA in 2017 from Southern Connecticut State University, where she now teaches Freshman English and Creative Writing. A New England native, Shelby has an acute attention to nature and capturing its splendor through words and photography. Shelby’s poems and photographs have appeared in Young Ravens Literary Review, The Wild Word, Verse of Silence, Better Than Starbucks, Gnashing Teeth, and others.