Bare essentials

When I go out in public

I take off sweatpants

Put on cargo pants

And only carry bare essentials

In my pockets

Reading glasses in a cracked case

Driver’s license, debit and credit card

Real folding money in a zippered pocket

Quarters for parking downtown

Two squares of paper towel

Ring of keys, notebook and pen

Sunglasses, unused tube of sunscreen

Next to a grocery list and mask

A vitamin hitchhikes

In the corner of a pocket

When I return home

I remove my cargo pants

Carefully lay them on the suitcase in my office

So nothing falls out on the floor

…because why wash what’s not dirty

7-14-21