Lapse

At 2 pm, doves coo
an afternoon lullaby —

drowsy ticking
drowns out work —

the clock’s face
and leaden hands
fall napping into
the hour’s warm lap —

minutes nod off and
sleepy seconds snore
digesting noon away —

time teeters —
its breathing slows
weighed down by
heavy parts of day —

—Terri Guillemets

Summer-nap

I drifted into a summer-nap
under the hot shade of July
serenaded by a cicadae lullaby
to drowsy-warm dreams
of distant thunder…

—Terri Guillemets

P.S.  Thank you to everyone who let me know about USA Today and King Features Syndicate using this poem for their “Cryptoquote” on July 5th. It is quoted as: “I drifted into a summer-nap under the hot shade of July, serenaded by a cicada lullaby, to drowsy-warm dreams of distant thunder.” —tg, 2023