On Waiting for Hot and Sour Soup at a Chinese Restaurant
Hot June day creates strange cravings
Cravings that lead me down the sidewalk
Past the people waiting out the heat
Watching cars come and go
Through the warn, gray parking lot
The smell of asphault assaults my notistrils
I reach the red room and order soup.
I hear ticking from a gold-crusted cat
Minutes pass as its waving paw counts the seconds
I look at this creature
So satisfied by its place in life
to sit, watch, and wait
Keep Confucius company
Confucius the great teacher
Reminding me of what it means to be a good person
Much like the teachings of my Scripture
Cars pass by
We are all one in this universe
In this parking lot
In this ninety-degree heat
We are one.