5:00 A.M.

His day begins
before the sun rises
first one alarm
and then the other
quietly he gets out of bed

shuffles to the kitchen
just as the coffee
finishes brewing

the newspaper is
waiting in the driveway
wrapped in plastic
headlines telling
of catastrophes
a hit and run accident,
a father gone berserk,
a flu epidemic,
a tidal wave
after an earthquake

He ignores the front page
and skims through
the other sections
business news
market tanking
world news
another civil war
local news
a city council member
arrested for drunk driving
comics they forgot to print

He pours his milk
in a bowl of grape nuts
crunches so loud
he can’t hear his thoughts
puts them aside and turns
on the television
with enough time
to watch reruns of
I Love Lucy
laughter helps
clear his mind.