This Bench

There is this bench in a park.

It has a plaque

Dedicated to a man

Who sat there every day

And watched the world go by.

I wonder what he was like,

What he saw.

As I sit here

I try to see through his eyes.

A dog runs free off a leash

As a little girl chases after it,

And her grandmother chases after her.

I see two kids

Walking along the path with their backpacks,

They must’ve just gotten out of school.

As I sit on this bench in the park,

The one with a plaque

Dedicated to a man

Who sat here every day

And watched the world go by

I wonder what he saw, heard, smelled, and felt.

Did he see as many people with their heads down

On their phones as they walked?

Did he hear as many cars go by?

Did he smell as much exhaust as I do right now?

Did he come here when he was sad?

Happy?

Mad?

Tired?

I see the tree branches above me,

Lined with green leaves

Sway gently with the breeze.

The sun shining through,

In spots on the bench.

It’s sunny today but

There’s a thunderhead in the distance.

Is the wind blowing this way?

I close my eyes,

I don’t feel a breeze.

I see a bird fly by, sticks in its beak.

It flies up to a tree,

It must be where its nest is.

It flies out and then flies back again,

This time with a worm in its beak.

Does it have hatchlings?

As I sit on this bench in the park,

The one with the plaque

Dedicated to the man

Who watched the world go by

Every day

I realize

Just how many stories he’s seen.

This bench in the park has been here awhile.

As the world goes by,

I wonder what it’s seen.