I Sat Down to Write… (A Poem)

By Joyce Jacobo

[Author’s Note: Sometimes finding the time to write can be difficult, because life has a tendency to get hectic at the most unexpected or strangest moments. However, even the craziest day can offer story ideas or opportunities.]

I sat down to write…

      when a black kitten entered my room with

           a catnip mouse that dangled from her mouth

                   from its blue       yarn tail

                                   which she dropped onto the floor

                                           gazed at me with doleful yellow eyes

                                                   and mewled for a game

                                                               of fetch

I sat down to write…

      when the water stopped its usual flow

            throughout our household

                 and prompted a trip outside to a dilapidated shed

                           to fiddle with the fuse box for our pump

                                     until the gauge showed

                                              full pressure once again

I sat down to write…

     when the freezer for the refrigerator

            kept in our garage broke down

                  which led to a drive for many miles

                             into the nearest town

                                  to select and order the delivery

                                            of a new one later

                                                       in the week

I sat down to write…

        when the electricity flickered out

                in the whole area

                        for more than two hours

                               during the evening    

I sat down to write…

       when the shrill chirrups of a cricket

            sounded from my closet

                 and I had to capture the visitor

                        in a jar to release outside

I sat down to write…

        when my brother came to ask

                 if I might watch a show with him

                        (for which it would lift his spirits

                                      to have a companion for it)

                               that led to around an hour of laughs

                                                      and general fun

I sat down to write…

          when two huge flies buzzed

                 around my room and workspace

                        that I had to usher out the window

                               and slam shut before they returned

I sat down to write…

        when an afternoon came where

                it was possible to type out a few sentences

                          and created

                                        this poem.            

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