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Ode to Opening Day
Haiku

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Ode to Opening Day

First Day
Comes the sound of bats
Of balls
The smell of leather
Of newly hewn grass
The feel of the sun
Of dusty winds.

The imagination moves
Of possibilities
Of your team doing best
Of being on top
Of leading the way.

With Opening Day
Comes
My self-declared holiday.
No longer do I wait
For Opening Day
Pronounced a national holiday.

It is.
I declare it.

Isn't it a day when kids get sick?
Can't go to school?
When parents realize how serious this ailment is?
Isn't it a day when the mind can't concentrate?
Loses its power to steady?
Isn't it a day the mind wanders hither and yon?

A day of pacing
Then
Having stopped for a moment
Moving again
Like a shift in the wind.

The clock is consulted.
The imagination at the ball park.
Players pick up
Feel
Scratchy new uniforms.

The stomach jumps.
Patters.
Another meeting with the watch.
Train leaves in an hour.
What to do with such immense expanse of time?
A visit to the bathroom
Relief.
Consult the watch again.

They're probably pulling up their trousers now
Getting ready to step into shoes
They see the room's reflection in.
What are the umpires doing right now?
This moment.
Probably not at the ball park yet.
Sure they are
Where else would they be?
Not having a leisurely meal, surely.

Into the pockets
Yep
The tickets
They're there.
Sit down
Stand up
Walk to the window
Look at the watch
Look at the sky.
The ball bright white In that background.

The wind in the trees is light.
Outfielders glide under a ball.
Will there be any spectacular plays?
Isn't Kenny Loften the greatest center fielder?
And what about Griffy?
Named Junior after his father, Ken.
What a player he was.
Steady,
Clutch,
Always the right play,
The effortless right play.
Part of the life of the game.
And Barry Bonds?
Wow.
Can he play ball.
So many gold gloves.
He'd be my first outfielder.

The shoulders rise
The blood pumps harder.
What does the watch say?
Still to wait.

They've got to be throwing the balls around now.
Yaz said he always felt the butterflies on
Opening Day.
Such ritual.
Part of the fabric of our society.
We must make it so.
A National Holiday.

White sparkling on emerald green.
An umbrella of cobalt blue.

J.S. Murray
copyright © 1997

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HAIKU

Effort expended is
commensurate to the need
to complete the task.

J.S. Murray
copyright © 2006

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