I woke around midnight
with the realization
I forgot to brush my teeth.
I tasted cabbage
in the form of sauerkraut
between my teeth.
Why could I not taste
the grilled red onions
or the mustard laden bratwurst?
I thought I had to floss
with cabbage stuck
where the brush could not pry it loose.
So I walked to the coffee table
and pulled a length of floss
out of a dispenser
but instead of sitting down
to watch late night television
I looked out the window.
In the street light
I saw the first snow of the year
fall to muffle the ground
form tufts upon the cholla
where the thrasher slept
without dreams of human oral hygiene.
copyright © 2022 Kenneth P. Gurney
Umflop 