Routines
For Micah
The morning air holds
the rumble of cleaners
Ravens strut through shadows
collecting spilled debris
No Look Backs!
as I am pulled to the Jesus
Freak pamphlets at the free
library and you are calculating
the weight of the world in your mind
Sky has a haze but more blue
than grey. I scan the return of Christ
language for similarities and try
to catch a glimpse of you up
the hill. Met with glare from windshields
as the sun rises a little more. I wave
into the light just in case
Notes:
Copyright: reprint “Routines” from Sunnylyn Thibodeaux’s Lucky Charms: New and Selected Poems, 2000–2025. Copyright © 2026 by Sunnylyn Thibodeaux. Reprinted with the permission of City Lights Books. www.citylights.com
Source: Poetry (January/February 2026)