The Corner Booth by Debbie Wiess

Every night it was the same.

As predictable as an atomic clock.

She would come in,

a woman in her 40s, 

haggard, drawn, disheveled,

looking older than her years.

The cares of life worn on her face.

Sitting always in the same booth, 

wedged in the back corner 

of the honky-tonk bar, reserved 

for her by the bartender.

Slightly hunched, head lowered,

in almost an attitude of prayer,

nursing her gin tonic, whiskey sour

or the occasional tequila sunrise. 

Several strands of long unkempt hair 

falling into her eyes, glazed, half-open, 

an old shiner, black and blue still visible. 

Contemplating the liquid in the glass,

opaque with smudges, in front of her, 

seeking the wisdom of life and

finding only forgetfulness in the 

depths of bottles. It is an image 

worthy of a Hopper painting.

Debbie Wiess is a Boston-based writer, who writes in French, as well as English. She has created a wide variety of projects for stage and screen, poetry and short stories, in both languages.  Her work has been presented throughout the US and abroad. Many of her poems have been published. She has been a member of the Bagel Bards since 2013 and has had work included in its anthology each year since then. In addition to writing, she also directs and produces.