Paths That Crossed

After I retired from my "regular" job, I began looking for something else to do, something structured, something which would take me outside these walls on a regular basis, something to ease this void in which I found myself.

I found all of that in becoming a "temp," a temporary worker who had a variety of assignments, doing inventory, sorting, filing, things I could do without stress or strain.

Then I found myself assigned to a project which was expected to last a couple of years, maybe more. What a great assignment that was, working with people of a wide range of ages, from a variety of backgrounds, all of us learning the routines, growing, settling in, enjoying this adventure.

Then another door opened, an offer of "early retirement," which I took. But I didn't just walk away. You don't do that with a family of friends. I maintained contact (and it wasn't just for the monthly carry-ins for sharing tons of cake in celebration of birthdays), watched the others continuing their growth, celebrated their successes, shared in their setbacks.

This poem is an effort to capture some of that, to preserve some of it for myself, perhaps for them, too.

PATHS THAT CROSSED

First the warehouse site,

then Newmark and Woodman.

How the paths of lives

came crisscrossing there

with the burgeoning work!

My own path veered away

at the end of '90, but

came back several times

as ever-widening circles

tested the boundaries

of my untethered life.

Now the grass reclaims

my old path, footprints

erased, nothing to mark

my having ever been there.

But I possess evidence.

The landscape of my mind

is alive with these paths,

tracks of those crossing

the path of my own life,

seemingly without design

or plan, yet unerringly.

These stored memories

endure on a gentle slope

teeming with paths strong

where crossings link them,

and likely to cross again.

© 1995

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Today's word: paths

Afterthoughts ...in response to your comments:

Thank you so much, Helen, for that comment. I found it rather late, but it still made my day.