S.E. McCarty
Last Confession
It’s been…gosh, how many days since
My last confession? A lot.
Father, forgive me for I have sinned and I hear
You dole out absolution. I need some of that.
It all started when my type-A husband envisioned a
Road trip to 6 different cities in 6 days,
So yeah, I took a hotel pillow
For the car ride. Not my best moment.
My fog-brain went into a frenzy
And cleared out the soaps, shampoos
And in-room Keurig pods.
Maybe even a few Kleenex boxes.
Our platinum status is not helping matters with its
Continental breakfast buffet. I came away
Loaded with caffeine and a purse full
Of tea bags, oatmeal packets,
And oranges “for the road”. In my hyper state,
I must’ve grabbed enough hot cocoa mixes
And to-go cereals to attract attention, my conscience
Guilty only because of some unfriendly looks.
Otherwise, I don’t even notice when my
Hands start scooping up nightstand pads
and pens, and complimentary water bottles too.
Is it true it’d be better to cut off my hands
Than to let them do this?
Well, I blame them for the many airline earbuds
I have somehow collected.
We should be punished I guess.
I figure my net worth is inching
Out of the red with every vanity set of
Q-tips and sample of lotion I come across.
It’s just math.
But some extremists may argue I’m stealing, so
I’ve come to check with you.
Is it really so wrong to take the extra
Toilet paper home for later?
Am I not entitled to two handfuls of
Mints as I leave dinner?

Observations
From the back of the room she
Observes me, checks off the boxes on
The rigid rubric, looks at my Plan,
Execution and Delivery, and sizes
Me down to a number.
From where I stand, it is obvious
She will never notice my lost sleep,
My conscious concern for my kids,
How I think about my lessons as bigger
Than the myopic scale on her chart.
How could she understand my passionate aims
Or possibly see the time spent perfecting my
Art? She doesn’t see what I’m doing as art.
These visits are aimed at checking the
Bigger box of Professional Improvement
As a make-up mirror highlights
All the deep lines and blemishes.
If only she could know how proud I
Am of these: Evidence I worried for
Someone, thought on my own, and saw
More in each than meets the eye.