Alacrity

She woke in the night

With poetry on her mind

And the taste of alacrity

On her tongue

~~~~

She filled up the air

With slow conversation

And secret I-love-you’s

Whispered in languages

Only the beloved could

understand

~~~~

Dreams unrequited

Impediments unchallenged

Reawakened, fresh

Alive! Alert! Awake!

Bright-eyed enthusiasm

Bounding barriers, imagined.

© Suzy Jacobson Cherry

I quite literally woke up with the first two stanzas of this poem ringing in my head. I had to look up the word “alacrity” to remind my half-asleep self that it means “eagerness” or “cheerful readiness.” What else could this be about but this newly re-awakened dream of teaching? After a year and a half of working with autistic students as a paraeducator, struggling mightily with some aspects of the job, and even sometimes feeling like a weird little girl left out by the popular kids, something opened a door I had closed almost 50 years ago. Now here I am, an old woman by many accounts, working toward my teacher certification and heading into an interview for a paid internship later this week. I’ve got this!