A baby cries.
The bell from
the checkout
register echos,
and a baby cries.
Someone’s dropped,
a bag of apples—
they tumble
bounce and roll
in different
directions, and
a baby cries.
Tennis shoes
slide across
puddles left behind
by sprinklers
that water the
cabbage the kale
the mustard greens
and collards, and
a baby cries.
A sticker label
is peeled from
a banana and an
orange and an
overripe avocado
and a manager’s
special pound of
beef, and a baby
cries. The buggie
wheels squeak,
its metal frame
rattles, and a baby
cries. “Excuse me”
repeats and
“How much?” and
“Where do I find?”
and above them all—
a baby cries.
© 2017 Nortina Simmons
Written for English #frapalywo. #Frapalywo is a German poetry challenge for Mrs. Paulchen’s poetry week. All this week, we are writing poems about our theme, noise. Today’s prompt is “in the supermarket.”
Nortina's Writing Inspiration Well 