Tea Leaves

Selma drinks her tea then checks the bottom
of her cup to read her fortune.

In the random arrangement
she thinks she sees adversity
coming in a clump of leaves
or is it true love with
that irregular seed located awkwardly
to one side?

Although when she thinks about it,
adversity and true love are not
opposites but come hand in hand
like two mischievous friends
prepared to wreck havoc on her
comfortable life where everything has a place
and remains in space without demands
from outside forces until love and
adversity arrive unannounced and trample her heart,
wrestle her down into a whirl of passion and dread.

Afraid she will not be able to withstand
their assault she asks her friend, Millie
to take a glance at her tea leaves.

Millie believes she sees good fortune arriving.
Selma will be offered a job and move to the
city, inconvenient but a better destiny than
having to deal with love or adversity