Incantation of the First Order  by Rita Dove
Listen, no one signed up for this lullaby.  
No bleeped sheep or rosebuds or twitching stars  
will diminish the fear or save you from waking  
into the same day you dreamed of leaving—
mockingbird on back order, morning bells 
stuck on snooze—so you might as well get up and at it,
pestilence be damned.  
Peril and risk having become relative, 
I’ll try to couch this in positive terms: 
Never! is the word of last resorts, 
Always! the fanatic’s rallying cry.  
To those inclined toward kindness, I say 
Come out of your houses drumming. All others,  
beware: I have discarded my smile but not my teeth.

Happy Sunday.

A here is a lovely recital to go with your morning coffee or tea.

Kristina Vårlid – Online Guitar Concert | Barrios, Tarrega, Rak, Vassiliev, Schmitz & Sommerfeldt