Thinking this morning about “things” that need attention that, either through necessity or pure avoidance, I keep pushing to the back of my mind. Instead I write a poem. :-)


The Ding

The spider-like ding,
the result of a truck
throwing a rock out,
does not threaten,
just annoys.

Its visibility is small.
An attempt to repair
fails.
So it remains.

Waiting.

What will be the reason
it spreads
and eventually shatters
the windshield?

Thank goodness for safety glass.

Still, it is a problem,
the fix postponed,
a nuisance
but not an emergency.

So it is with all the problems
we push to the back.

The home maintenance we delay,
money needed elsewhere,
heat and food the priorities.

The health issues we ignore,
wary of what that pain might mean,
symptoms whispering the “what ifs.”

The relationships that stagnate,
connections left hanging,
at first a palpable fading,
at last a silent break.

They stay, small and silent,
pressing, widening,
until one day
the crack deepens
and all is shattered.

The reckoning arrives.



Poetry by Melinda K Zarate The PoetBay support member heart!
Written on 2026-02-24 at 17:11

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