a moment in the day: waiting for the water to boil

I stand in the kitchen making morning coffee. Try to push the background hum of existential dread out of the ears of my mind. 

I wonder if it’s buzzing in there so loudly this morning because of my loved ones who are sick or hurting, or my Monday morning dentist appointment, or the world or the world or the world. 

I glance at the clock to see how old I am.