LIFE Poem: Puzzle Box, by Mark Kessingeer

my letters are tossed into a panning box
which I shake and watch
shake and watch
but no words emerge
the letters dance, swing themselves
and crowd into frightened huddles
of code
or nonsense

this morning, I almost saw
the words evil, silver and sliver
but they weren’t there
only broken versions of
happy, sometimes, and
don’t

silently, i cheer on their tiny teams
hoping they gel
cement into significance
yet their marching never runs above
a stagger
slow gangs
of panic

I reach a bony finger into the box
and stir them
shove them
nudge them

I coax nothing.

I salt them with periods,
painting
with confused pepper…
nudge and shove
nudge and shove

I will continue my harmless singing
keep injecting myself
into them
experimenting
with expression
as I
we
play with
the end of time.