A busy bustling morning
Hungry stomachs lined from the register to the door
“I need hot fries with no salt!”
“I need a salad made with only romaine lettuce!”
I collect the money an dump it in the register
I run to the frosty machine and begged it to neatly swirl the chocolate and vanilla together
I shoved the crazy mixture onto the tray
And swiftly punched in the buttons for the Coke and that bright bubbly Mellow Yellow
“Tanaze!”
I snapped my head around to see my boss babbling on about dropping money into the safe
“There are too many loads of people here to be having that much money in the register!”
I return to the silent stare of the despairing senior citizens searching for their crimpled coupons
Cooks teasing their appetites
With the grill frying juicy zesty burgers
I finally settle to a steady pace
Pouring bittersweet lemonade as I daydream about the life of my dream career.










Snap of the gloves
The powder rises
The eyes of the mother as low as a little puddle of water in the burning sun
When I insert the epidural
The pain becomes puny in the hands of the little human ripping away from the womb
“Breathe.”
“Take slow easy breaths.”
“Ready?”
“One, two, three.”
“Push!”
The little snip of the umbilical cord,
The sniff sniffs of the bulb syringe
“Wheeaaahh Whann Ahh” screams the newborn
“Thank God!”
”Let me hold her” exclaims the grandmother, hovering over little Bella.
Life in my trained hands

BEEP BEEP!
There goes the timer for the fries.
And I’m slammed back into this normal life of a Wendy’s cashier.