cottonwood fluff is drifting down

cottonwood fluff is drifting down from somewhere uncertain

as I wait for my white chocolate mocha with whipped cream here

at the drive-through espresso stand situated between

the thurston county animal shelter and that marsh over there.

“here comes the surprise!” is the message we receive

every ignorant, brutal, beatific day of our lives —

from the arrival of nature’s cute bits to sudden communication fails,

unexpected deaths, clever jokes, windfall gifts, and so much more.

hold onto your expectations loosely, like sentient reins

you threw around your own neck, even knowing their tendency

to tug your gaze the wrong way, and yet still let there be

a trajectory we all advance on, while adrift across this great view we made as one.