Lifted
A poem by Joe Cottonwood

Lifted

A young man
smaller than me
Home Depot parking lot
says “You want some help?”
as I’m lifting a heavy box
(containing a toilet, if you must know—
and why would this embarrass me?—
but it does)
sees me lifting and I say “Yes!”
because I’m struggling
so I take one side of the box
expecting him to take the other
but he says “I’ve got it”
and grabs both sides, lifts with ease,
places the boxed toilet in my truck bed
and walks away as I shout “Thank you!”

My day uplifted
by a lifting up
and never mind that he instantly sized me
as once able, now nearly disabled,
in denial, nearly gone.

And when I go, young man,
in your good hands
I hold hope for this planet.

About the Author:

Joe Cottonwood has repaired hundreds of houses to support his writing habit in the Santa Cruz Mountains of California. His latest books of poetry are Foggy Dog and Random Saints. He can be found on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/JoeCottonwood. His website is http://joecottonwood.com

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