Time

Kenya Time

If the lamps
go out in the evening,
light candles and
share in the sacred
gift of life stories,
doubts,
questions,
secrets,
irrational fears,
heartache,
sisterhood.

Sunday mass is
set to start at 10:00
tomorrow morning.
It will start at 1:00.
Arrive at 10:00
to sing and dance
with your neighbors
until the priest
shows up.

If you stop by
only to say hello,
one of the
mamas will
sit you down
to eat a meal.
Stay with her
until she is
satisfied that
your plate is
clean.

El Salvador Time

The family of a
martyr welcomes
foreign students
into their home
each winter.

They spend a long
evening telling stories,
bringing truth to legend

Biographers said
he carried a camera
because he liked to
take pictures.
Really, he liked having
his picture taken.

The movie was
mostly accurate,
except the scene
where he stepped
between the
tabernacle and
the machine gun.
Hollywood flair.

Photos and newspaper
clippings line the wall.
Oral history fills the
empty spaces.
An audible shrine
breathed into being
for a modern day saint.

Mexico Time

Short of spoons,
Twelve teenagers remove
sweat-stained bandanas
from their foreheads,
venting the scent of
disturbed dirt and
bent rebar.

They place them in the
center of the table,
minus one,
and distribute
playing cards.

Phones forgotten,
rounds of
belly laughter
resound through
open air.

Poland Time

Once an hour,
a trumpeter
appears at the
bell tower window
and begins a tune,
stopped abruptly
in the middle of a
note.

Homage to
the one whose
anthem an arrow
struck short.

Make yourself
welcome at a
cafe on the
square,
and watch the
trumpeter come out
three, four, five times
while you drink
three, four, five beers
in the company of
those whose thoughts
develop best with
the slow passing
of time.

The waitress will not
bring you the bill
until you ask.

Lebanon Time

The bus may
show up ninety
minutes late.

And, that’s ok.

In the meantime,
pluck an apricot
from the tree,
and wander
among vines
of kousa.

Settle into stillness,
air that is clear
but not crisp.

To the east,
a mountain range.
Memorize its
ridges.

To the west,
the Mediterranean
pushing through
haze.

Around you,
kin recounting
history.

U.S. Time

On time is late.
A professional
arrives fifteen
minutes early.

Book your day.

Color code
to-do lists.

Stress is a
sign of status.

Coffee dates
in an hour
or less.

Photo Credit: Dimitris Kalogeropoylos