The Coffee Date - Poetry by Maria Jones-Statham

The Coffee Date

I sit in the coffee shop and wait
Always waiting
I look at my watch
I look at it again 1 minute later

You're late

Is it because you didn't like my photo?
Maybe you thought I was ugly?
Or too tomboy-ish?

Wait, this is the right coffee shop?
There isn't another one across the street
Or around the corner...

My heart races as a man fitting your description enters
No wait, he is with someone
Minutes pass
I text a friend and keep looking at my watch

Finally there you are!
I can tell by your glasses and hair
You don't even notice me at first
I wave at you and you seem to look right through me...

For a moment I think I might be wrong
It isn't you...
Or maybe you will turn and leave
Pretend not to know me

But then you see me
Your eyes light up
I smile
You order a coffee and come over

You apologize for being late
I say it doesn't matter but inside my heart is twisted
You talk about the weather
You ask about my family
My work, my hobbies, my interests

Awkward silence and even more awkward conversation
You keep looking at your watch
I catch myself looking at mine

Well this was nice meeting you say
Yes, nice meeting you
My heart sinks like a rock in a bottomless pit

Would you like to meet again I blurt out
I will call you later you say

But you never call

And I really didn't expect you to I suppose

It is so hard to meet people

I go home and pet my pussy, literally and figuratively

Sometimes I wonder if I should stop meeting men
You know, buy a vibrator, get more cats, stop shaving my legs

But then I see the happy couples in public
Holding hands, kissing, touching

And I realize its not sex I am craving
Its companionship
The kind a cat or a dog could never give

So I go on Plenty of Fish and I see a new you
You seem nice...
Attractive, interesting hobbies...

We agree to meet
Coffee?
Sure, I love coffee

I sit in the coffee shop and wait
Always waiting
I look at my watch
I look at it again 1 minute later



By Maria Jones-Statham

March 2012