Steam from a hot drink,
Immersing the nose
With sweet, foreign scents,
Dried ‘neath distant skies.
 
The night thrives outside,
Slipping outside walls,
Through open windows
Comes moonlit breezes.
 
Outside, owls inquire,
In soft, solemn tones,
‘Who, who.’ A question
Without an answer.
 
Though insects cry out,
‘Me meee, Me meee,’ like
They wish the bird spoke
Exclusively to them.
 
And I sit inside,
Listening to lives
I’ll never understand,
Made aloof by the day.