Another one

I throw it up in the air, one
Of those blue and white
Coleman water coolers with
A spout and handle,
Up into the grey sky.
It leaves my hand at a swing
Landing with a pop as
The handle breaks free.

Before, his shorts and
Tank top and sandal feet
Left His leaning
Against the car. I knew
He couldn't stay away
No matter how mad he was.
The Caprice Classic
Light blue station wagon,
The kind with the backwards
Facing third row seat, I saw it
Pulling in from the stands.

Before, there were so many
Loud words exchanged
And tears- I heard,
From under the table
Already ready to go,
A crescendo of anger, 20-some
Unhappy years and finally
An ultimatum. When we return
It would all be different
He said, so She left with me
To see my sister play.

Again, I swing it up after
Putting the handle back on.
Swinging, falling, breaking, fixing...
Again...
        And again...
                          And again...
All the way to the car-
For over forty years now.

One day, when I need it,
No matter how hard I try
The cooler won't stay together
Because that day of the game
The damage was done.

Poem

Plume of the Poet Laureate

I'm filled with hope          and sorrow
Happiness                       and despair
This is life
I am living
So fragile                        and strong
Pain                                and pleasure
A weak kind of headstrong
A headstrong kind of weakness
It could end at any moment but
Still it goes on in
An unbroken line
Up     down     right     left     north     south
Veering but unbroken
This life
I see yesterday
             I breath in today
I envision tomorrow
I smile
          The kind that creeps up
From the middle left of your chest
It rises, warms and curls
I smile                          and I cry
The salty tears mount and blur
Slipping with a blink
                              Sliding down
the rounded curve of my face
I cry                           and I smile
I'm terrified               and ecstatic
Sad                            and happy
I'm alive
            In a classroom
Listening to
                A poem about
Atomic bombs