POEM A DAY – February 13 – VANESSA SHIELDS

Today is for the love of dreaming! What’s your love dream?

For the Love of Books and Beverages

On this thirteenth Friday, with spring in the deeps of the crisp morning air, I sit and dream into the sunlight. I see shelves filled with stories. I see books splayed and belly-paged on the wall as art. I see flowered armchairs, quilt-laden sofas, round tables painted primary colours. I smell coffee, croissants and cookies. I smell ink and dust and daydreams. I hear laughter and weeping. I hear the full silence of everyone reading. I have written this place in novels and poems. I have envisioned this space: collecting pieces to collage the dream’s purpose and promise. There are empty storefronts in our downtown core. When love is so involved it’s hard to accept that money needs a place to lift the dream off the page. Alas…alas…today is for dreaming! Today is for loud-ing the love we have for delirious delusions like bookshops cafes in heart-sick downtowns.

The self I see in the space is aged. White hair trailing behind me in the swish of magic wishes…Today, only my bangs are silver…but o, how the dream is golden, dazzling, alive.