I am toast
and not the pretty golden brown
evenly buttered kind
I’m stuck in the toaster
charred beyond recognition
crumbling burned black toast
evidently when my day starts at 4:30a.m.
by 6-something in the evening I am done
kaput
not worth much
by almost 7:30p.m. I am toast
actually those crumbs in the bottom if the toaster
I may be in bed before the children tonight
unless I fall asleep on the backyard chaise
where I have the dogs leash under a leg
to hold it in place
and I am stretched out fairly flat
my eye lids at half mast
there are dishes
clean ones to unload
pots and pans to do by hand
laundry to fold
more to move around
from one machine to another
but something’s burning
smoldering
crumbling
beyond done
crumble
crumble
ick
charred to bits
toast